


Forever My Heart

by KHB123



Category: Naruto
Genre: Action, Angst, Blood and Violence, Canonical Character Death, Drama, Eventual Sex, F/M, Family Drama, Feels, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Graphic Description, Slow Romance, Swearing, Tragedy, Uchiha Massacre
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-11
Updated: 2019-02-20
Packaged: 2019-10-26 04:54:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 7
Words: 45,814
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17739398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KHB123/pseuds/KHB123
Summary: Before the massacre, there had been Izumi Uchiha. A girl who loved him. A girl whom he protected. A girl who was betrothed to another. A girl who was the love of his life...and the girl whom he would lose forever. Will she be there when Itachi's suffering ends? Rated M for future lemons





	1. Izumi

**Chapter One**   
**Izumi**

_Birth...death...birth...death...birth...death..._  
On such a beautiful sunny day, just passing into the August summer season, the sky was blue and cloudy, the grass was freshly green, and the gusty winds were cool and soothing. The memorial monument that centered the field glistened from the sunlight like jade from its dark surface.  
_Birth...death...birth...death..._ With each step he took, slow and light, the words that contrasted with one another echoed in Itachi's mind like blinking lights. Oblivious to the beauty of his surroundings, he continued to walk onward with the same question that haunted him for weeks...no, months. These questions that left this hollow pit in his chest, singing at the edges with sting of recent, bloody memories of the battlefield.  
A barren wasteland punctured with knives, swords, the ashes of fire bombs and blood of fallen shinobi. Death. Death had spread all over his field of vision, like a blanket of darkness riddled with disease, fear, and hatred, overwhelming his senses with its horrid sight and smell that would forever haunt his memories.  
If only such devastation existed, then what reason had there been for living? What about life could make this hollow feeling go away and turn it into something that made more sense? These types of questions that had rotated in his head for many months had drained him in ways that had tempted him to do foolish things...even come close to greeting death, if not for the caw of a crow to regain his survival instincts, screaming at him to just live...but for what, exactly?  
_What is life? What meaning was there behind it?_  
The answer to that had come very recently for the first time in Itachi's life, and at this time, he had been grateful that he saved himself from a huge cliff-jump. He was glad, in that moment, that he had been alive. Otherwise, he would not have had the chance to look upon his new baby brother for the first time.  
Born only weeks ago, Sasuke was a wonderful sight to behold. A tiny, pink thing with a small tuff of spiky black hair topping his head as he wailed...so soft, so innocent...Itachi had felt overwhelming warmth spread through his body like a wake-up call, filling his heart and soul with such tender adoration that time had just stopped that day. Holding Sasuke for the first time had been the best feeling of his life. He had never felt so alive with happiness. Sasuke gave that to him. He gave him a reason to live.  
He realized at that time that he had once been the same as Sasuke once. So when he was away from his baby brother, while part of his question had been answer, it did not cease his confusion, nor the emptiness that begged for enlightenment, leaving him once again as an emotionless robot on the brink of mental collapse.  
_What is life? What is death? Birth...death...What is their purpose?_  
"Hey!"  
Itachi's head snapped up at a squeaky child's voice, interrupting his wandering thoughts. He turned around, blinking. The owner of that voice was a little girl smiling brightly at him from ten feet away with a group of boys wrestling behind her. "You're Itachi, right? An Uchiha from my class?" She looked about his age, small and skinny while wearing a long-sleeved purple high-collared shirt and bike shorts, long brown hair tied back into a ponytail, loose strands framing a round pale face with a pair of large, doe-brown eyes, nearly onyx. A tiny mole resided under her right eye.  
Itachi didn't know her, and even tried to search his mind from if he had met her before or how she knew his name, but couldn't. A lot of girls his age fawned over him lately, and he usually ignored them. She was probably one of them. One of those naive fangirls that giggled and squealed around him without a care in the world, making fools of themselves and ended up crying or screaming when they didn't have their way.  
She was his opposite.  
With Itachi's lingering silence, the girl continued to smile, a real genuine one, and held up her hands in offering. "Come play with us!" she insisted.  
Itachi just gave her a blank look, and then slowly walked around her and her extended hand, pretending that she didn't exist. He felt her become crestfallen at his silent rejection behind him.  
It was for the best. He didn't want to hurt her feelings, but he didn't want to encourage her either if he showed too much kindness, which usually led to other conclusions he would rather not deal with. Besides, he was busy...and he didn't know the meaning of the word "play."  
The boys that she had been hanging out with (and Itachi wondered why there were boys and not girls) were another story. They stopped wrestling and shouting when noticing Itachi walk away from the now dejected girl. "Hey, are you dissing us?" one of them shouted, as Itachi passed them.  
"Hey, we're talking to you!"  
"I have shuriken training today," said Itachi quietly, without turning to looking at them. The Uchiha emblem on the back of his sleeveless black, high-collared shirt faced them as continued on. Almost mocking them. The boys grew annoyed.  
"Ooooh, shuriken training, huh?" one mocked, before picking up a rock. "Well, then, let's practice shuriken, too!" He threw the rock. "Dodge this, Uchiha!"  
"No, don't!" cried the girl in horror, but the rock already zipped through the air toward the back of Itachi's head...who dodged to the right at last minute in the blink of an eye. The girl's eyes widened in awe. Did he actually _feel_ the rock coming with his back turned? Was he really that good?  
The rocks kept coming, the boys shouting, "That kid!", "Trying to act so cool!", and "He's such a stuck-up!"  
"Stop it, you guys!" she screamed at them, tears misting her eyes. "Leave him alone!"  
"Shut up!" shouted their leader, who was picking up another rock. "This is between guys!" The girl's cheeks puffed up at the insult. 'Between guys,' he said? Was it not long ago that these boys were fan-boying over her? You'd think they would try to win her favor by stopping like she asked, but no. She guessed it was probably different for guys: pride overrules love.  
It caused them to do stupid things, so it was little wonder they left the love-sick part to the girls, trying to win the favor of boys they like, while the guys pursued violence, trying to boost their skill and ego so that they can either boast about it later or grow up to become deadly ninja.  
Meanwhile, Itachi was dodging the rocks effortlessly without looking up once. While his body kept shifting, his eyes were lost in thought, staring the grass he passed over. He was thinking about Sasuke. Then he was thinking about the bloody battlefield from the war. Sasuke...battlefield...  
_Life is born. Life dies._  
 _Life...is a battle._  
"Hey, get back here, you coward!" the boy leader shouted, while throwing the next rock.  
"Stop it!" screamed the girl, helplessly. Itachi's eyes narrowed, the rock spinning, the guys laughing, and the girl screaming...this ridiculous game was over.  
Itachi spun around and caught the rock smack into his palm, feeling the edges fit into curled fingers, and then tossed the stone back with a twist of his wrist. The rock zoomed across the air with lightning speed-SMACK! CRACK! WHACK! The stone projectile disarmed all the other flying stones that came to follow, batting them out of the way, changing their direction back towards the boys. Their weapons of choice landing on top of their heads, they stared back at him wordlessly, gaping faces completely pale and shocked at such effortless talent. Fear tainted their young eyes.  
They stood no chance against him. His skill was...abnormally flawless.  
Itachi observed all of this in one second, his eyes then flickering toward the girl, who also grew silent. She too was speechless, her eyes that had been shedding tears wide and amazed. The breeze blew her bangs across her parted lips and unblinking eyes, completely unfazed when fixed on only him. She looked neither happy, sad, nor scared, but her doe eyes were shining with endless wonder.  
Itachi blinked and quickly turned around, starting walking away. This time, nobody attempted to stop him, or made any noise. But it was thanks to these guys, Itachi answered one part of his endless questions and just wanted to go home. Home to Sasuke. Home to where his life truly began, he realized with a small nod to himself.  
The girl stared after him, watching as the wind rippled his shoulder-length black hair and clothes as he walked.  
Now she knew why Itachi was different. Not because he was handsome, or talented, or rich, or even that he was quiet and indifferent toward girls and other people (she was very well aware that was the natural behavior of an Uchiha male). But when she looked into his eyes that moment, meeting them briefly after he deflected the stones, there had been a flicker of...sorrow. Wisdom. Kindness. Compassion.  
She saw a boy who looked her age, but with a gentle soul that was as old as time itself.  
It was for this reason that she fell in love with him.

                                                                                                         ∞∞∞

Summer had passed and it was now Fall. October 10th, to be precise. When Itachi wiggled his index finger above Sasuke, small and wrapped up in a bundle on the floor, the baby grabbed old of it with both his tiny hands in a tight grip. The baby giggled happily, and Itachi found himself smiling. He was filled with so much love toward his baby brother that he could barely breathe. Even better that Sasuke seemed to adore him just as much, and that made Itachi feel special. Sasuke usually cried when held by anyone else other than himself or his mother. Itachi had a feeling Sasuke was going to be stubborn kid growing up, but he couldn't bring himself to care.  
Almost three months old, already, but Sasuke would remain a child. Itachi promised himself that he would make sure Sasuke's innocence would be preserved for as long as possible. All Itachi had ever dreamed of was an impossible one: to have a normal and happy childhood. To have innocence, to be slightly clumsy, and to not have a care in the world. It was too late for that. But while watching Sasuke, he would get to watch his little brother have the childhood he never got, and while he would be slightly envious, it would be no greater gift than for him to see his own flesh and blood become a happy child he would cherish with all his heart and soul.  
Sasuke really was his greatest gift. Just seeing him laughing for the first time had given him indescribable joy. Babies, new lives born to this world, really were a miracle, but Sasuke was the greatest miracle of all and no one could ever change that. Already Itachi's young life was changing under Sasuke's influence, feeling real happiness and how to forget about all the traumas of his life. He could stop questioning life and start living it. Itachi's heart swelled when Sasuke pulled his finger into his mouth and started sucking. Yes, his baby brother truly was a blessing.  
"Kaa-san."  
"Hm?"  
"Is Lord Fourth going to have a baby, too?"  
"Hai, I wonder what it'll be," chuckled his mother, who was preparing dinner, but glanced over her shoulder to smile at her sons playing. Then she laid out the plates and wrapped up her apron. "There. I'll be going out tonight with some friends, so go ahead and eat your dinner. Sasuke's bottle is on the counter, already heated."  
"Okay." His mom did mention before that she was going out. He also heard that one of her friends was married to normal shinobi, a non-Uchiha, and lived outside of the compound with her husband. Many of the clan disapproved, including his own father, but his mother didn't seem to care less about whom her friend was married to.  
"Your father is out working, too, so please watch Sasuke. I'm counting on you, Itachi."  
"Ah." As if Itachi would ever let anything bad happen to Sasuke. He would make it the mission of his lifetime. When Sasuke kept sucking on his finger, Itachi bend over and kissed his little head.  
"You are definitely worth living for, otutou," he whispered to the baby. "Looks like it's just you and me for tonight."  
The baby cooed happily, tugging at his hair strands.  
Later that night, when Mikoto had already left an hour before, Itachi had Sasuke bundled comfortably in a sling over his shoulders, feeding him from a bottle. Itachi sat on the mat of the living room, gazing adoringly down at his baby who drank from the bottle using both hands at the nipple. Tiny but strong hands, Itachi noticed. No doubt meant to wield a weapon someday. Just as _his_ had...  
Itachi shook away troubled thoughts just when Sasuke finished the last drop of milk with a smack.  
"All done now?" whispered Itachi with a small smile. When Sasuke cooed and let out a burp, Itachi giggled and pulled the baby close to him while standing up and walking toward the open slides leading to the front porch.  
There Itachi sat in the cool night, the roads empty and quiet, with only the sound of crickets chirping. The sky was lit into a dark blue by the light of the full moon, surrounded by millions of stars blazing with energy. As he rocked his tiny baby brother in his arms, who was growing sleepy, Itachi gazed up at the moon and felt a complete sense of peace settle over him.  
"It's a full moon tonight, Sasuke," he said softly. Sasuke cooed happily in reply, and Itachi chuckled, looking back down at his brother, eyes filled with absolute tenderness. Little Sasuke was so precious in that moment, so small and fragile in his arms, making the very heart in his chest beat, that he wished it would never end...  
An ominous wind picked up, brushing the strands of his hair. He looked back up into the sky. Smile faded, replaced then with an unsettling chill growing in his gut.  
_What is this? What is this sensation?_  
Sasuke then whimpered and began to cry. Itachi blinked and started rocking his infant brother. "There, there," he cooed softly, though his mind still pondered on this instinct in his gut. The same instinct...before he walked upon the precipice of a bloody battle in the war. _I don't like this feeling. Why did Kaasan and Tousan have to be out now?_  
Itachi leaned over his crying brother, hiding his fear with a gentle smile. "Don't cry, Sasuke," he said softly. "Your big brother will always protect you, I promise."  
Itachi wasted no time in gathering Sasuke back into the house, walking silently but hastily through the hallway to put on his sandals and grab Sasuke's toy dinosaur and second filled baby bottle before tucking them both in the safety of the sling, all while Itachi whispered comfortingly to the crying infant. The house shook from massive tremors, the floor literally quaking large forces that caused the walls of the house to creak. He heard the roar, like the screeches of a wild animal, fill the air. Trying not to panic, Itachi immediately rushed out of the house with his still wailing baby brother.  
"The Kyubi is on the loose!"  
While surrounded by people shouting and running for their lives, destruction and screams coming from all directions, Itachi covered his brother as much as he could as he ran...when he looked up, his eyes widened at the sight of a giant boulder raining down upon them.  
A building nearby blew up from the hit, and Itachi leapt out the way just in time while many others were not so lucky. He felt fire and wood chips seer his back when landing tumbling sideway, using his body to shield Sasuke from injury. More boulders and destruction followed….then silence. Breathing heavily and his back stinging, Itachi sat up and found himself looking down at a screaming Sasuke, red-faced and full of tears, but to his immense relief found him unharmed. "Sasuke...it's okay, we're okay," he gasped, trying to smile at the crying baby despite his terror. "You got a little scared, huh? Shhhh, we're okay...you're okay..." He kept saying this as he slowly stood up and found himself surrounded once again by a field of bloody and charred bodies of ninjas and citizens alike. A war zone. Despair threatened to seize him, as haunted memories came flooding back. _Is there no escape from this horrible nightmare?_ He hugged Sasuke closer to him, but mostly as comfort to himself, to remind him that he still had his precious baby brother to protect. He wondered if his mother and father were okay.  
Itachi was running down the road of the village just outside the wasted Uchiha compound, surrounded by devastation, when he heard shinobi call out, "This is an announcement from the Leaf Police! All civilians are to evacuate to the Southeast shelter! The Southeast shelter!"  
_The Southeast shelter...right! I know where that is! Wait..._ Itachi stopped, tilting his head in another direction. He sensed a chakra signature. A small one, from a child. _Someone's over there._ He hesitated and glanced down at Sasuke, who had exhausted himself from crying. Biting his lip, he made his decision and ran toward the chakra form.  
He didn't run very far when he heard a high-pitched wail come from a dark alley, "Otousan! Okaasan!" Itachi reached the alley and found a small form wandering aimlessly with her small hands pressed helplessly against the wall, covered in dirt and trembling like a mouse. The little girl was crying as she kept crying out for her parents in a small, sweet voice.  
What really startled Itachi was the red and white fan emblem on the back of her shirt. She was an Uchiha. Did she wander off from the compound? If so, how did she expect to find her parents out here, if they were still alive?  
If she thought hiding in this alley between the building was safe, she could not be more wrong. They had to get out of here before more destruction followed.  
"You! Come here!" shouted Itachi, holding out a hand.  
"Huh?" The girl turned around, her face wet with tears, and again Itachi was startled by her doe-like eyes and the tiny mole on her cheek. "Itachi-kun?"  
_Wait...I know her._  
It was that girl from months ago, back near the memorial site with those boys, who already knew his name. She was nice to him, had asked him to play with her, but he ignored her. He had forgotten about her...until now. _Her long, brown hair strands brushing her cheeks with innocent eyes observing him with wonder..._ The sudden memory made his heart skip a beat momentarily before he shouted, "Hurry!"  
Nodding with teary eyes, the brown-haired girl began to rush towards him...when an explosion burst from the building near her. By pure instinct, Itachi grabbed her extended wrist and yanked her out of the way of the fire and destruction bursting out of the building, filling the air with heat and dust.  
Twisting around, he had pulled her to his side and wrapped his free arm tightly around her, a crying Sasuke embraced in his other. Her hands gripped his shirt like it was her lifeline. His heart was pounding like crazy. That had been really close.  
"We're going to the shelter," he told the girl firmly, maintaining his composure. "Stay close to me."  
"Hai," whispered the girl, before they took off down the road together. Her hand continued to grip his shirt as they ran.  
While running among the rest of the retreating civilians, the streets lined with dead bodies, Itachi eventually spotted his father, reinforcing the police. He stopped and turned towards the girl. "Go ahead of me," Itachi told her.  
The girl's eyes widened with confusion. "Itachi-kun?"  
"Everyone will be there," he said.  
"Will you be alright, Itachi-kun?" she asked, concerned.  
"I will. Now go, hurry!" He pushed her gently ahead of him. After casting a worried glance back at him, she soon took off ahead of him. Reassured she was safe, Itachi went up to his father.  
"Tousan!"  
"I knew you would be alright," said his father, seriousness hardening his tone. His composure was remarkable. "Get to the shelter quickly."  
Itachi opened his mouth, but then felt Sasuke shift slightly in his arms, and then nodded with resignation. "Hai."  
Then came a high-pitched scream. Itachi automatically reacted and rushed to that scream, knowing right away whom it belonged to. Pushing through the crowd, he found the little girl again, but kneeling in the streets, shaking a motionless, bloodied body among the rest. One of the Leaf police officers was trying to pull her away.  
"Tousan, wake up!" she was crying, shaking the body desperately. "Wake up, Tousan!"  
"Kid, get back with the rest," said the officer, sternly. "There's nothing you can do for him now!"  
"Somebody help my tousan!" wailed the girl, tears running down her cheeks. "Help him! Tousan!"  
"He's dead." With a gasp, she looked up with wide, teary eyes to see Itachi standing there, looking down at her and the jounin's body. Though his expression was unreadable, his dark eyes glistened with sadness and exhaustion. "We can't help him now," he said softly.  
"But..." The girl sniffed and glanced back down at the dead man who was her father. "Tousan..." A hand entered her field of vision and she looked up to see Itachi reaching for her with a soft expression, the baby in his arms now crying loudly.  
"Come here," he whispered.  
With a sob, she leapt up and burrowed herself near Itachi, burying her face in his shoulder, careful not to squash the baby, who only bawled louder. "Itachi-kun!"  
Itachi wrapped his free arm around her shoulders and squeezed gently, trying ignored the anxious feeling fluttering in his chest. Normally, he didn't let anyone other than his family this close to him, let alone a girl, but for now he can make an exception. He truly felt sorry for her, losing her father like this. She was a nice and cheerful girl when he first met her. She didn't deserve all this.  
_In war, there is always death. It follows us everywhere._  
Looking down at the jounin's body while holding a crying girl and baby in his arms, Itachi observed the man's features under the charred burns and blood stains, eyes staring up sightlessly from frozen horror. They were hazel brown, lighter than the girl's. Then he saw under the blood-soaked hair was the color of dark blond, almost a sandy brown.  
_Blond? He's not an Uchiha?_ Itachi's eyes glanced down at the crying girl in realization. _Is she half-blood? That'd probably explain why I don't remember seeing her in the compound._  
"Kids, you better get going," warned the Uchiha officer, the grounds still shaking from the thunder roars of the attacks. "Get to safety!"  
"Hai," Itachi nodded and found himself holding onto both the girl and his little brother for the rest of the way until they made it to the shelter. By the time, they were inside, surrounded by civilians that were mostly women and children, the girl finally stopped crying from exhaustion, but she kept rubbing a fist over her eyes.  
Itachi kept listening cautiously for the sounds of loud explosions and the roars of what the people said was the Nine Tails. He could feel its extremely powerful chakra, even in the safety of shelter. With every quake, the ground trembled and dust fell from the stony ceiling, causing everyone to whimper and protest from inside. Sasuke kept wailing in his arms, perhaps also sensing the threat in the air, the little girl sat beside him, still rubbing her eyes and wincing as though in pain.  
It seemed like Itachi was the only child of his age that managed to maintain his calm. He looked down at Sasuke and rocked him, whispering, "Shhhh, it's okay. It's okay. I'm here, I'm here..." After a few minutes, pulling out the toy dinosaur to dance him around to cheer Sasuke up, his baby brother finally managed to calm down, blinking his little black eyes up at Itachi, before they closed and drifted off into sleep. Itachi sighed in relief, putting down the dinosaur in Sasuke's stubby arms and kissed that precious little head.  
"How do you do it?" Itachi looked up, realizing that the girl was speaking to him, but wasn't looking at him. Her voice was small, eyes hidden behind her bangs as she stared at the folded hands in her lap. "How do y-you...manage to...be brave after all this?"  
Itachi eyes dimmed, tired and haunted by her question. "I've seen worse," he admitted quietly. And it was never something he would wish anyone else to witness, let alone this innocent little girl.  
When he didn't speak any further, the girl ended up blurting out tearfully, "It was just me and Tousan tonight. Kaasan went out for the night and he and I w-were going to...b-but then the village was being attacked and Tousan told me to stay inside the house before he rushed out to fight. He was a jounin. H-He always cared about saving people, and I wanted to be just like him." She sobbed and rubbed her eyes again. "He told me not to leave the house, but I saw the Kyubi and got scared, so I decided to go look for him and Okaasan. I got lucky because the house got destroyed just when I went outside, and I definitely knew something was wrong. I couldn't find them, but found you instead." Her face whipped toward, her dark eyes heavy with such tears, helpless and pleading. And pretty (Itachi's breath hitched). "And now he's dead...he's _dead_ , b-because...because if I hadn't stopped him, or if I was strong enough to go with him and help him, t-then he wouldn't have...he would still be..." She shut her eyes, more tears escaping.  
"I'm sorry about your father," said Itachi gently. By all rights, it shouldn't be his business to listen to her talk, but he listened to her every word and took it to heart. For some reason, his heart shattered at the sight of her face. Of all the horrors and death he had witnessed in his young life, seeing the grief of this girl's heart made him also want to cry. Even though he barely knew her, he wished there was some way that he could comfort her like he was able to comfort Sasuke, but he didn't know how. All he knew how to do in situations like this was be strong...and he was starting to feel that even that wasn't enough.  
In that moment, it hit him that he didn't even know her name yet.  
The girl stared at him, then wiped away her tears with one hand, staring the ground between them. "Thank you," she said, her voice calmer now. There was pause, but Itachi noticed that behind her bangs, her cheeks were blushing pink. "Um...Itachi-kun?"  
"Ah?"  
"Can...Can I, um..." She wrapped her arms around her chest shyly, her face getting redder. "That is, if you don't mind..."  
Itachi waited patiently.  
"Can I lay in your lap?" she whispered so softly, her pale face now tomato red beneath her bangs.  
"Um..." Itachi didn't know what to say for a moment, feeling his own cheeks heat up a bit. He normally didn't like it when people got too close to him, otherwise they would end on the ground by either fist, jab, or blade... "Okay," he finally choked out. For some reason, he couldn't bring himself to say no to her. Not now.  
"Thanks," the girl whispered, scooting closer until he could feel the heat from her small body. He didn't know why his heart was picking up pace. It was weird.  
"I..." Itachi started, and the girl paused, looking up at him with questioning but worried eyes. She probably thought that he would change his mind and push her away. Itachi swallowed. "I'm sorry, I...I don't know your name."  
The girl blinked in surprise and a small smile managed to light her tired, tearstained face. "Izumi," she said softly, closing her eyes.  
In that moment, when she reopened them...red tomoes spun. Itachi's eyes widened, a gasp escaping him. "Y-Your eyes..." he managed. _No, it can't be...the Sharingan? Already? Tousan said it was too early!_  
"Huh...'Tachi-kun...?" Izumi mumbled, her body tilted forward and Itachi managed to shift Sasuke out of the way before she landed heavily across his lap, passing out.  
"Izumi? Izumi!" Itachi found himself saying worriedly while placing hand on her shoulder, before moving it toward her forehead. It was feverishly hot. Itachi found himself gazing down at the girl, recalling the Sharingan replacing her beautiful dark brown eyes. His hand brushed away the long strands from her soft, young face, which was now relaxed and peaceful. The sight was strangely intriguing...and comforting. His muscles relaxed and eyes softened.  
"Izumi," Itachi whispered.  
Sasuke shuffling uncomfortably in his right arm with a whimper in his sleep, Itachi managed to shift himself so that he held both his brother and the little Uchiha girl in his lap, both out like a light. It was uncomfortable for Itachi, but he couldn't care less. He was never one to put his own well-being above others.  
For the rest of the night in the shelter, even when the danger had long passed, Itachi never moved. Though he eventually closed eyes from exhaustion, his arms remained protectively around both Sasuke and the girl he now knew as Izumi Uchiha.  
He never let go.

 


	2. A Girl and a Friend

Chapter Two  
A Girl and a Friend

 _At the edge of his subconscious, something came near, way too close for comfort, reaching for…._  
"Ah!" Itachi woke up with a start and found that his small hand had grabbed a larger wrist extending toward Izumi and Sasuke in his lap, his instinct immediately on alert. The owner of the hand gasped, and he found wide, teary black eyes of a dark-haired woman staring back into his own.  
"Itachi!"  
Itachi looked over the woman's head, releasing her wrist in surprise when seeing Mikoto. "Kaasan!"  
Running around the other woman, Mikoto fell to her knees and yanked Itachi and Sasuke into her arms with a teary sob, embracing them fiercely. "Oh, Itachi! Sasuke!" she cried, tears spilling down her cheeks. "Thank Kami you're alright! I thought...I thought..."  
"We're okay, Kaasan," said Itachi, hugging his mother back. While burying his face in her neck, he felt Sasuke squirm and whimper awake in his sling. When his mother released him and went to pick up her youngest son, cooing and kissing him tearfully, Itachi was startled to see the other woman from before take the still-unconscious Izumi in her arms. Her eyes also filled with tears.  
"Izumi!" she had cried, cradling the little girl and pressing their cheeks together. "Oh, my child, my darling little girl! I thought she was dead, I thought she was dead..."  
This obviously had to be Izumi's mother. She was alive, after all. With shoulder-length black hair and pitch black eyes, she also had her daughter's fair skin and oval face with well-defined features that could rival with Mikoto's beauty. She was definitely an Uchiha.  
"Oh, she has a fever!" exclaimed Izumi's mother, pressed a hand to her face in panic. "After all the things she must have seen..."  
"You better check her eyes." The mother looked up at Itachi, startled that the six year-old spoke gravely. "Her Sharingan awakened last night and she fainted. It could be still on. Please forgive me. I couldn't do anything else..."  
The mother's eyes widened, and Mikoto gasped, "S-Sharingan?! Oh my! But isn't it way too early...? Her body couldn't possibly maintain the amount of chakra to control it!"  
"No, she doesn't..." Izumi's mother propped her daughter up and moved to open her eyes, her face suddenly grave and stoic. Her fingers gently propped Izumi's eyes open, and sure enough, the pale red of the Sharingan still glowed beneath her lids. Then the woman's own Sharingan activated. Red eyes met red, spinning and dialating...and soon Izumi's eyes faded back to dark brown.  
When her eyes closed, the mother gazed down at her daughter sadly. "My husband and I suspected...with her not being pureblooded….there had been signs of her chakra going haywire whenever she got moody. Sometimes she complained her eyes kept stinging. She would either be born without the Sharingan...or it would come when least expected." She let out a shuddering breath and deactivated her Sharingan. "Well...now I know it's the latter...and my husband will never..." She shut her eyes and her voice wavered. "I have been told Kosuke had been killed….and I still haven't found his body. What will I tell Izumi when she wakes?"  
"She already knows," answered Itachi solemnly, causing both Mikoto and the mother to gasp in horror. "On the way here to the shelter…I believe that's what awakened her power." He tilted his face downward in a gesture of solemn respect. "I'm sorry for your loss, Uchiha-san."  
"Oh, the poor girl," whispered Mikoto, covering her mouth. Her eyes were filled of sadness. "Hazuki-san, I..."  
"It's done," said Izumi's mother, brushing her fingers through the little girl's ponytail. Her expression was composed, though the remaining tears on her face were still evident. "He did his duty," she added, her tone just as empty of emotion as her face, "as a shinobi of the Hidden Leaf. It was, perhaps, inevitable."  
"Hazuki…." whispered Mikoto, seeming at a loss on how to reply.  
In that moment, Izumi stirred and her eyes fluttered as she mumbled, "Kaa...san…?"  
Hazuki leaned down and kissed her child's forehead. "I'm here, precious one," she whispered lovingly. "Go back to sleep now."  
Izumi moaned and fell back to sleep in her mother's arms, who then stood up. She looked down toward Itachi with tired, red-rimmed eyes and bowed her head. "Thank you for saving my daughter, Itachi." Then without another word, she turned and left the shelter along with the lines of people streaming out into the bright daylight.  
Itachi watched them go with a small lump in his throat. _Izumi..._  
He then felt his mother's arm wrap around his small shoulders and pull him to her chest, where Sasuke was cradled nearby. Mikoto buried her nose into his hair. "I'm so proud of you, Itachi," she whispered. "Thank you for protecting your brother."  
Itachi nodded and closed his eyes, listening his mother's soothing heartbeat against his ear. "I'm glad you're safe, too, Kaasan. Can we go home now?" he asked, hoping that their house was still standing.  
To his relief, his mother hummed in agreement.

                                                                                                      ∞∞∞

This was the second great funeral of Itachi's life since the one right after the war. Everyone in the village once again gathered around the great fire monolith with a swirling vortex symbol in the center. A few had broken down into tears, most of them children, having lost their loved ones to the Nine-tails attack.  
Itachi looked around the sea of black suits, feeling a sense of deja`vu. Except back then, Sasuke did not exist in his arms as he does now. The baby was sleeping peacefully in his sling, safe and alive. After everything that has happened, Itachi was thankful his mother finally let him hold Sasuke again after that huge scare. His family was alive, and according to his father, every one of their clan members had miraculously survived the attack.  
Itachi knew no one else; therefore, he wasn't able to mourn for the dead the same way everyone else at present did. Of course he felt sad for those who died, and pity for those who survived only to bury their family and friends, but like in the war, he felt no connection toward them.  
It was the shinobi way….or so his father had taught him.  
In front of the great fire emblem, bundled in a handwoven basket, lay a tiny newborn. Sleeping peacefully, like Sasuke was. The Hokage's son, Itachi learned. His fuzz of hair was blond and his chubby pink cheeks were marked with strange whiskers...like a fox.  
It had soon become known by the whole village that this child was the new jinchurikii after the death of his mother, Kushina Uzumaki. Sadness suddenly hit Itachi when he looked up at his mother, Mikoto, who looked ahead with a composed face, but with red-rimmed eyes.  
Kushina was his mother's best friend. Only a few days ago, Mikoto, Sasuke, and he went to the hospital to visit the newborn Uzumaki, who became an orphan on the night he was brought into the world. The tragedy was devastating for all...but the true tragedy was the hard life that awaited this kid, especially in the eyes of all who knew who and what he now was.  
The child was the jinchurikii...but all who knew were forbidden to ever speak of it, or the punishment would be severe.  
No one knew that the child was the Forth Hokage's son, save for a very few, including Itachi's parents. As far as the rest of the village were concerned, the child of Minato and Kushina had died with his parents, and those who knew the truth were strictly forbidden to reveal the baby's true heritage, or have any contact with him.  
Itachi only knew this because before the hospital visit, his father had been the one who told him and his mother of this strict order, having been directly informed like all the leaders of different clans of this secrecy, and warned him and Sasuke to stay away from the child in the near future. His mother, though very reluctantly, didn't argue with Fugaku, not wanting to risk any more danger with the beast that killed her friend and put her family in danger.  
But why? Itachi looked toward the baby with pity, and then Sasuke in his arms. No matter how much damage the Nine-tails had done to the village, this child was innocent. Itachi felt no grudge toward the baby. Because the only response his mind could come up with such a cruel order was: _what if it had been Sasuke?_  
Not that Itachi would have any reason to involve himself with the kid in the future anyway, but he just could not hate the boy. In a way, he understood a little of what it was like to be looked upon as an outsider.  
Before all the people, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, stood in his red and white robes and hat. He had retaken the mantle of Hokage after the death of the Fourth. His face was grim with saddened eyes filled with weariness and regret.  
"Many lives were lost, including the Fourth Hokage, Minato, and his wife, Kushina," he spoke in the middle of his euology to the village people. "The facts behind the incident are still unknown..."  
_Life is born._ Itachi looked at the blond baby, and then down at Sasuke.  
"...but for now, let us mourn our comrades..."  
_And life...dies._ He turned his head again toward the cemetery at the far side, toward those who had lost their lives long before. He wondered where that pale, creepy shinobi with the long black hair was. The one with the golden snake eyes.  
_"Grieving over the dead is meaningless. If there's any meaning in death, it's to take advantage in it."_  
_"What is the meaning of life?"_  
_"There is none. There's only meaning in life….if it is eternal."_  
_He was wrong,_ Itachi thought. _Life is not meaningless. I know that now. To lose life is..._ The answer escaped him, leaving him with the same feeling of emptiness.  
Little did he know that at the far side, Izumi Uchiha was looking toward him with wide-eyed curiosity, wondering what was going on in that head of his.

                                                                                                     ∞∞∞

The next day, Itachi found himself wandering over to the construction sites with baby Sasuke, strolling around on this sunny day. It would be a while before everyone would have a proper place to live. There had been so much destruction in the village inflicted by the Nine-tails.  
Most of the Uchiha compound had been destroyed, leaving many families homeless and heartbroken. And it was not just the Uchiha: a countless number of people had lost their homes and most valuable possessions, leaving them at a complete loss with what to do with themselves afterwards. Unlike the Uchiha, their loss had been greater with the number of people who had died, breaking their spirit and their dignity altogether as they struggled to pick themselves back up and accept what little charity the village could provide for the homeless.  
Itachi's family had been fortunate. Miraculously, _most_ of their mansion had been found still standing, not including the huge missing chunk of the entire front where the veranda had once been. The interior of their home had been a mess, covered with fallen building pieces, destroyed furniture, shattered glass, and fallen debris from the mutilated hole in their rooftop, but the walls still stood strong, along with the rest of their roof, providing the family enough shelter for the time being.  
All the clans may have to relocate. He heard that his father was in the middle of a meeting with the Hokage and the High Council at this moment.  
"Itachi-kun!"  
That voice...Izumi? Sure enough, Itachi turned around and found Izumi running happily over to him. Stopping before him, she clasped her hands to her chest, blushing slightly. "Um...T-Thank you for before..." she said, shyly, her eyes twinkling. "Because of you, I was safe!"  
"I'm glad you didn't die," responded Itachi, and then stiffened at what he just said. _'I'm glad that you didn't die?'_ That sounded wrong, even coming from his own mouth. But it was true. All he could think about right now was the relief that she was alive and okay.  
Izumi looked taken back with his strange words, not knowing what to say in return, but she didn't look offended. The silence becoming awkward, her eyes then moved toward the baby in his arms and smiled gleefully at how tiny and adorable it was. She never really asked about Itachi's baby sibling that night, too caught up in her fear and grief before fainting from her newly activated Sharingan. She had then woken up later in her mother's arms and didn't see Itachi until during the funeral.  
"Your little sister?" Izumi asked, giggling. She was oblivious to the tiny, dark glare baby Sasuke was giving her, one tiny hand clutching at his brother's shirt.  
Itachi smiled a little. "Little brother," he corrected her. She wasn't the first person to make that mistake.  
"Can I hold him?" she asked, with some longing in her eyes.  
"No." His answer was blunt.  
Her smile was replaced with an offended frown. "Why not?" she demanded.  
Itachi hesitated. "I don't want him to start crying."  
Izumi laughed a little. "Aw, you're not going to cry, are you?" she cooed at Sasuke, as she reached over and picked the baby up, while Itachi watched wordlessly to see what would happen.  
"AAAAGGGGGHUUUHHHNNNN!"  
Sasuke's reaction took them both by surprise. The baby Uchiha was barely in Izumi's arms when he started throwing a violent tantrum, literally screaming and waving his arms like a maniac. Poor Izumi looked frozen with terror and shock, even as the crying Sasuke started shoving at her face with his tiny hands as if to escape her hold right before Itachi's very eyes.  
It was the funniest thing the young prodigy had ever seen in his life. Izumi didn't seem to think so, though.  
Trying hard not to laugh, Itachi quickly took back Sasuke from Izumi's frozen arms. "There, there," he said softly, rocking Sasuke gently. The infant instantly went from crying to giggling happily, clapping his little hands once he was back in the safety of his beloved big brother's arms. Itachi let a small laugh of adoration escape him. "There, there."  
As he started to walked away, his eyes fixed only on Sasuke's infectious laughter, Izumi finally blinked from her shock. Her shoulders tensed with anger. Groaning loudly, fists clenched in frustration, she whipped around and yelled after them, "Aww, come on!"  
Itachi trembled….and then burst out laughing. Izumi was left stunned for a moment. This was the first time she has ever seen Itachi laugh, or smile this big. "Huh? What-What's so funny?" she stammered, watching the boy's shoulders shake from his laughter. It was such a beautiful sound, like something mirthful that had been kept buried very deep for far too long, but she was too confused and annoyed to show her delight in it.  
When Itachi didn't respond, she huffed at his ignorance and started to tailgate him while he coddled his baby brother. "Hey! What did I do?"  
"I _did_ warn you," Itachi answered, unable to keep the smile off his face. It was nothing personal; Sasuke really did cry if it wasn't him or his mother holding him. Even his own father was one of the unlucky ones.  
"That's not fair!" Izumi huffed and stomped her foot. "One day, I'm going to make your baby brother...uh, what's his name?"  
"Sasuke."  
"Yeah, one day I'm going to make Sasuke like me," said Izumi, nodding determinedly. "Just you wait!"  
"Hn," Itachi's mouth quirked in amusement at Izumi's declaration and Sasuke's distaste toward her. Three months old, and his brother already disapproved. Of what, he was was not sure. Who knew what went on in an infant's head?  
They walked in silence for a while, both of them seeming a little shy. Itachi found himself not minding that Izumi was with him while he strolled with Sasuke. It felt...nice. Different, but nice. They listened to the hammering of the construction around them and Sasuke's incoherent babbling. Izumi stared at Sasuke, suddenly lost in thought. "Itachi-kun?"  
"Hn."  
"Back at the funeral...what did you think of that little baby?"  
Itachi now turned to the girl with a blank expression, encouraging her to continue. Izumi looked away, suddenly sad and burdened, which was uncharacteristic of her. "Kaasan...is really sad since Tousan died. She seems different now, and not in a good way. When she looked at the baby yesterday, she almost seemed...mad. Really mad. After the ceremony, she told me to stay away from that child because he's the demon that killed Tousan. She said it's all that his fault and that we should despise him for what he did to the village. But how can that be?" She shuddered, her eyes became wide with confusion and sadness. "I only saw a sweet, little baby, all alone before a crowd of people, with no mommy or daddy to hold him ever again. How can I ever...ever hate someone like that? I've never hated before! When he was alive, Tousan said that he hopes that I never grow up to hate, and I didn't know what he mean by that...not back then. And now Kaasan...she practically forcing me to..." Izumi shook her head and gripped her bangs, looking like she wanted to cry. Itachi really hoped she didn't because he didn't like seeing her in tears. Even when they made her eyes shine in a pretty way.  
"Izumi," he said, and the girl looked at him in response. "Do you hate the baby holding the demon?"  
"...No, I don't. Should I?"  
"No," Itachi shook his head, "because I don't either. He's the same as my brother. He doesn't know anything and won't even remember ever having a mother or father. There's going to be a lot of people hating him, already. He didn't kill those people, Izumi. The Kyubi did. The human infant and the kyubbi are two different beings."  
"Oh," whispered Izumi. "Okaasan never told me...that's so sad."  
"She shouldn't have to make you hate him...I don't think you can hate, even if you tried," whispered Itachi. "That's what I like about you."  
Izumi blinked in surprise, cheeks blushing. "You...like me, Itachi-kun?"  
He was surprised at his own words yet again. "...I found no reason to dislike you," Itachi said carefully.  
Izumi's shoulders slumped, as if disappointed. "Oh, I see." Then she brightened. "Then it's decided: I won't hate the baby just because Okaasan says so. He's just a cute, little baby, so I won't blame him. Instead, I'll try to get stronger so that I can help people, like my daddy did. Oh! That reminds me. Are you going in the Academy next year?"  
Itachi felt a sweat drop at her hopeful expression. "I...I don't know. I thought the school got destroyed..."  
Izumi giggled. "Not all of it, silly! They're fixing it up right now, like everywhere else!" Itachi suddenly felt stupid and looked away, blushing in shame. Izumi shuffled her foot, smiling at his embarrassment. To see the normally emotionless and exceptionally talented child look so sweet and shy...who would have known? "Well, I hope you'll think about it. It would be nice to have another Uchiha in my class for a change. It's always been just me in my grade."  
Itachi looked confused. "Then...how did you hear about me from before?"  
"The Primary Uchiha Deity Class. You remember, right?"  
Itachi knew what she was talking about. Every young child in the Uchiha clan was required to go. It was their school instead of the Ninja Academy, taught only by the Uchiha themselves. Run by the clan elders, it was to get them to mingle with their own clansmen, learn about their history, and prepare for the awakening and knowledge of the Sharingan. Itachi had only attended those classes for exactly four weeks, right before he had been drafted into the war when they found out about his talents. He had just turned four years old back then. Very young and skilled shinobi, including himself, were all forced to fight for the village. He never heard from them since, so he figured that they were all killed in action.  
The war was over. Times are different now. Or were trying to be.  
"You were in that class?" said Itachi slowly. Izumi nodded. "I don't remember seeing you..."  
Izumi's smile became uneasy as she stared down at her feet. "I guess not...I always sat at the very far back. I wasn't as..." Her brow furrowed, "... _welcomed_ as you were by the others, because I lived outside of the clan and my daddy wasn't an Uchiha. They said I was weak and tainted because of it. It was hard." Then her eyes twinkled at him. "But I remember you. You were the best in the class and everyone liked you, but you always looked lonely. I was sad when you were gone, because I didn't get a chance to talk to you. Kaasan said you were a prodigy and that you were the clan leader's son. I was pulled out and put in the Academy not long after that, but I was happy when you came back."  
"Oh...yes..." Itachi thought back on the day she bravely went up to him near the memorial site and offered to play with him, but he had politely declined while his thoughts swirled with questions about life and death. Then he remembered something and asked, "Are your eyes okay?"  
Izumi looked surprised for a moment, but then she nodded slowly. "Mm-hm. I guess I got the Sharingan after all. I suppose I should be happy..." Her eyes misted up with tears. She sniffed and wiped her nose. "But I won't get to show Otousan. I miss him, you know?"  
Itachi hesitated, and nodded. "I know."  
_Life dies. Life...moves on…._  
Soon, both kids heard Izumi's mother, Hazuki Uchiha, call out to her daughter from a distance, waving her arm from beyond the construction sites.  
"Coming, Kaasan!" called Izumi, before turning to Itachi apologetically. "I have to go now." She started to run, but then paused and turned around with wide, hopeful eyes. "You'll...You'll think about it, won't you, Itachi-kun? About the Academy?"  
Itachi watched her with silent wonder at her cheerful and hopeful behavior, feeling a brief sense of warmth fill his chest and touch his cheeks, before he mentally brushed it aside and gave her a quick nod. "Okay."  
His response seemed to delight Izumi, who smiled and waved. "Bye, Sasuke-chan!" she cooed toward the baby, who in response let out noisy spittle at her, causing her sweat to drop.  
When she was gone, Itachi turned around and continued walking. "Sasuke, you didn't have to throw a fit," he teased the baby, bouncing him slightly. "She's actually very nice."  
Sasuke sneezed, and pouted, before reaching up for his hair strands. Itachi smiled.

                                                                                                  ∞∞∞

"Congratulations on your acceptance into the Academy, children!" announced the Third Hokage at the ceremony for the newly rebuilt Ninja Academy. "From this day forth, do your best to reach your goals in becoming a shinobi."  
Never did Itachi expect to find himself here.  
Five months had passed since the Nine-tails incident. The Ninja Academy was now reinstated, good as new and better than before. The snow had melted toward the end of February and spring blossomed quickly when entering March. Students who attended the school had returned, but all freshmen had to catch up or start over since their first year of ninja education had been put off for a good reason.  
Itachi stood among a crowd of many freshmen and transfer students his age, calm on the outside but totally stiff on the inside. He knew his parents were somewhere at the back of the crowd with the others to witness his first attendance, but he wasn't worried about that. He already learned many things. Experience in real battles can do that. Even before the loss of his innocence, he had already known quite a few important things about becoming a ninja. He memorized the whole handbook, was instinctively skilled with various blades and endless forms of taijutsu, and had even learned the Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu from his father at the end of October in their new training grounds upon his insistence. During that time, the Uchiha clan had been recently transferred to the far side of the village, surrounding the Nakano Shrine, where the clan had originated as a compound.  
After one try, his jutsu was flawless, the size of his fireball larger than a small hut, and his father praised him, making Itachi feel proud...but also a little disappointed when discovering how easy the jutsu was to him. As always.  
But on the same day, something seemed to be bothering his father. Well, more than usual. Fugaku had been acting strange ever since that village meeting with the council about relocating all the noble clan districts. It was also the same day that his father told him that he will be entering the Ninja Academy instead of the Uchiha Deity School, which surprised Itachi because he had been trying to plan the right time to bring the subject up to his father. He had even been expecting an outright rejection.  
Since the Ninja Academy had been reopening in the early spring, his parents had even decided to place him with the freshmen right away, the ones who had begun their first year later since last September (like Izumi Uchiha), since he was already six years old, going on seven in another three months.  
It was a shame Shisui wouldn't be with him, having already graduated and been made a genin at age six during the Third Great Ninja War long before he met Itachi. He wondered what mission his older friend was currently on.  
Having been lost in his thoughts while the Third Hokage delivered his speech, Itachi sensed movement at the corner of his eye and glanced over toward the right of the line of kids in front of his own. He was surprised to see Izumi smiling confidently back at him, waving. Her long brown hair was down past her shoulders as she wore a light purple short-sleeved, high-collar shirt, a pink ruffled skirt that flared slightly at her knees, and violet strapped sandals.  
She looked at him like it was Christmas instead of her first day back at school. When she smiled at him, it was though she was glowing.  
Itachi felt his cheeks heat up before he quickly looked away. His heart was thumping wildly.  
What was _that?_


	3. Friends and Rivals

Chapter 3  
Friends and Rivals

After the ceremony, all the students were being guided by their teachers back inside in the building. Itachi had lost Izumi somewhere in the crowd. He looked back over the children's heads and saw his parents among the crowd of adults: his father, cross-armed and stern, while his mother spotted her son with a proud smile and waved at him. "Do well on your first day, Itachi!" she sang out to him, causing Itachi's face to heat up slightly with embarrassment before he quickly turned around.  
Of course he would do well. He always did. But…maybe he was hoping, deep down, that there would be something he did _not_ do well on. That there _can_ be something new for him to learn. It was part of the reason why he wanted to come here.  
Attending this school would be very different than his own training with his friend Shisui, but it would bring him another step closer to fulfilling his lifelong dream. It was another obstacle in his path he had to get out of the way, and nothing more.  
A few boys bumped past him on either side (a little too hard to be accidental), and at the corner of his eyes, a few girls his age were already luring toward him with wide, sparkly eyes, whispering to each other and giggling. Itachi ignored them and walked a little faster, trying to ignore the sudden queasy feeling settling in his stomach.  
What was the matter? Was he getting sick? It was just the first day of Ninja Academy and they were just harmless kids.  
While walking alone in the middle of the hallway, surrounded by screaming and running children with teachers yelling at them to calm down and line up in single files, the answer hit him like a load of bricks.  
He was nervous. He had no idea why, as he kept telling himself that he had faced far worse in the past...but being surrounded by a building full of loud children hurt his ears and had his sweaty hands clenched tightly into fists at his side. They were far noisier than the whole Uchiha clan combined. Though his outward appearance seemed indifferent as he walked calmly through the hallway with his shoulder bag, his head was pounding and his alertness was raging. He inwardly worried that by the end of the year, being surrounded by this many loud children will drive him insane.  
_Life is a battle._  
He eventually found his assigned classroom for freshmen, where another crowd of kids were screaming and throwing paper airplanes around each other. Some kid used a stick to blow a spit ball, which landed on the wall beside Itachi with a wet splat. He stared at the spit ball, feeling his jaw tense in disgust.  
Five more years of _this?_  
"Itachi-kun!"  
Hearing that bell-sweet voice amongst the storm of the kids' yelling, said-prodigy looked up and found Izumi seated in one of the rows of desks in the classroom, right in the middle column, waving at him with an excited smile. "Itachi-kun, over here! I saved you a seat!"  
Though entirely composed of emotion, he had never felt so relieved to see her in his life. In that moment, already feeling overwhelmed by this new environment, he then began to realize that this whole situation was no longer his field of experience. This was _hers._  
Itachi started to head over when he felt small hands grab his arms. "Itachi-kun, you're here!" squealed the orange haired girl excitedly. "I really can't believe we're in the same class! We should sit together!"  
Oh, no. _This_ again. Sighing inwardly, Itachi became immobile and kept silent, trying to ignore the girl's irritable tugging. Even long before the Academy, he had fan girls every now and then, including the very few in his compound that were close to his age, but being quiet and polite by nature, he had figured that if he just ignored them long enough, they would eventually get bored with him and go away.  
No such luck.  
This orange-haired girl's face _did_ look slightly familiar as one of his past fan girls, since that she already knew his name.  
"No, Mari, I want to sit with him!" protested another little girl with blonde hair and blue eyes. Soon, the raven-haired boy found himself surrounded by probably more than half the girls in the classroom. Itachi felt himself become smaller and smaller, wishing that he was invisible...maybe there was a jutsu for that?  
"Itachi-kun, sit with me!"  
"No, me!"  
"Aww, I want to sit with him!"  
"He's so cute!"  
"Stop, you guys!" protested Izumi, now standing up from her seat in the middle row. "Don't crowd him!"  
"Oh, be quiet, Izumi!" yelled Mari in annoyance, hurting Itachi's ears _and_ his arm. "You just want him all to yourself!"  
Izumi's face turned pink. "T-That's not true!" she stuttered in shock, but was ignored.  
"Yeah, just because you're an Uchiha, doesn't mean you can get everything you want!" shouted another girl with pig tails.  
"Yeah, so don't act like you're his girlfriend, or something!" a brunette said nastily, enough to make Itachi bristle slightly. Why was this such a big deal? In his mind, these girls were disgracing themselves as future ninja of Konoha for losing themselves in a petty fight over something so trivial and childish. Besides, Izumi was...a friend...and a girl. It was the same thing, right? Why did they think that was wrong? He was so confused.  
Izumi started waving her arms, now blushing furiously. _"No!_ It's not like that!"  
"What's the big deal?" Everyone turned to see a shaggy haired boy standing at the edge of Izumi's desk row, looking bored with his arms folded behind his head. He had a bandaid over his nose and a small scythe strapped to his back. "That new guy's Uchiha, too, so what's to say he's gonna get the same treatment you girls so claim Izumi-chan to have!"  
_'-Chan?'_ thought Itachi. He found himself staring at the boy, some unknown feeling stirring in his gut. Was this a friend of Izumi's?  
"Shut up, Kamano!" shouted Mari. "What do you know about Itachi-kun?!"  
"Huh! Whatever! What do I care where the new guy sits?" The boy named Kamano then turned to Izumi, peeking an eye at her with a smirk. "Hey, Izumi-chan! I can sit next to ya if you want!" The girls all scowled at that.  
Izumi smiled politely, though a sweat dropped awkwardly. "Oh, uh, Kamano-san, that's..." she started to say, trying to find a way to politely decline. Let's just say Itachi wasn't only one who had a horde of admirers. Izumi never really considered herself pretty (she had seen prettier Uchiha girls that made her feel average and plain), so while it was sweet to be admired (she didn't know whether it was because her Uchiha features made her attractive in their eyes, or maybe because some of other girls once accused her of being 'too nice'), there was only one guy whose opinion she really cared about, and he was currently trapped in a crowd of fan girls whom she actually hoped to make some friends with one day.  
"Alright, settle down, class!" hollered the sensei who entered the room, and the children instantly quieted. "This isn't the playground! Take your seats!"  
_Finally._ With the girls now distracted, Itachi broke away from their hold and practically darted up the steps until reaching Izumi's side, plopping down in the empty seat next to her. His eyes flickered toward Kamano, who scoffed before turning to sit at the desk behind them. Izumi glanced at him and giggled. Itachi gave her a questioning look, and she shook her head, hand covering a smile. "Sorry, nothing!" she told him, leaving him confused. "But don't worry! It's going to be great."  
Oh. Itachi blinked and looked away. Did he really look that bad? His face did feel a little light, so he must be paler than usual. Why should he be worried? He was here to learn new jutsus, that's all. Although Itachi did feel more secure now that Izumi was by his side. If he stuck with her, it should be fine.  
Once the sensei introduced himself, he announced, "I'm sure some of you had already been taught ninjutsu in your households, but here at the Academy you will also train to coordinate and work together in a group. The fundamentals are important. Make sure you learn them well."  
Itachi honestly hoped so. But it didn't take away all the looks he can feel toward him and Izumi, the only two Uchiha in class.

                                                                                                    ∞∞∞  
  
"You haven't said _one_ word all day, Itachi-kun," said Izumi, later during lunchtime. She and Itachi were sitting next to each other against a wall of the school, seated in grass, opening their bento boxes. It was Itachi's choice of spot, having led them both around the corner of the playground where all the other kids were eating and playing. "You didn't even answer any questions in class, or talk about your life goals...Not that it's unusual for you to not be the talkative type," Izumi quickly said, "I mean I know you're not like that which is not a bad thing but I just really think that...that...is something wrong?"  
Itachi stared into his open bento box. His appetite was long gone. "It's...different," he murmured.  
Izumi stared at him, relieved to finally hear his voice again. "Oh, you mean the school...or the kids?" she said softly.  
"...Both." And nothing was like he was used to. He felt exhausted after just a few hours in a classroom, surrounded by children who were strangers that stared at him the whole time like...like he was either the new toy or the new threat. It was hard to tell which, but it made him uncomfortable.  
"Hai, it is." Izumi looked at the grass, smiling gently. "I only went here for a month before the Nine-tails attacked, but everyone is new to this, too. I have a feeling that we can find friends here."  
"Friends?"  
"Well, yeah! You weren't planning to go to the Academy without making any friends, right?" Itachi stared at her blankly for a few seconds too long and Izumi practically fell over in shock. "Itachi-kun!"  
"Is it important that I make friends?" said Itachi slowly.  
Izumi looked hurt at this. "Of course," she said softly. "It would definitely be a lot more fun to have friends."  
_Fun?_ Itachi thought of Sasuke. Thought of all the times he entertained his baby brother, who was growing big enough to crawl now. The thought of him warmed Itachi's heart, making him already homesick for Sasuke. Then he thought of Shisui... "I have Shisui, and Sasuke," he said carefully. He looked into her large brown eyes. "I have you."  
Izumi blushed and smiled, almost sadly. "That makes me very happy, Itachi-kun," she said. "But Shisui-san is not here, Sasuke-chan is a baby, and I'm...it would just make me even happier if you had more friends. You always seem so lonely."  
"I'm not lonely,"said Itachi, a little defensively.  
"Oh...sorry," Izumi looked away, embarrassed. "I didn't mean it like that. Forget I said anything." Itachi looked away, then picked up his onigiri and started eating in silence. He could feel Izumi's gaze on him, looking sad. This annoyed him. He didn't like being pitied.  
He wasn't lonely. Really. He usually trained by himself during his free times, more often with his father now. Making friends wasn't really something he had the energy to waste his time on….but it was mostly because he wasn't very good at making friends to begin with. Shisui came unexpectedly, right after that very high cliff jump...their meeting had been a coincidence, or Itachi thinks so...  
What else could he say to her? That he didn't know enough of what the meaning of 'friendship' was? That the Great Ninja War had taken that away from him? That he still had horrible nightmares of blood, gore, and mutilated corpses scattered across a field of ash and fire? Of seeing his family, his precious baby brother...in a pool of blood…and to feel fear, such agonizing _terror_...  
This was something Itachi cannot share with anyone, especially to children his age and younger. He made his first kill at age four, and it did not stop there…Now he never wanted to hurt anyone else for as long as possible, especially not Izumi.  
He would bear this burden in silence. Nobody can understand. Not these kids, not Izumi, not even Sasuke. They will never know it, but Itachi in a way was fighting to preserve all of their innocence, to let them keep something that was stolen from him forever.  
_One day, maybe one day_...Itachi looked ahead, staring at nothing in particular.  
Seeing his tired onyx eyes stare ahead, Izumi recognized that look. The hidden burdens he must be carrying, which made him look impossibly older. More intelligent than he appeared. Izumi swallowed the lump in her throat, but then spotted flecks of rice on his chin and smirked. "Heh. Here..." she said, reaching out. "You got rice on your face..."  
Itachi was very startled when feeling her light fingers sweeping gently across his chin, getting rid of the rice flecks. When her small hand then moved to cup his cheek, he was blushing furiously. Even his heart was never this wild in battle. "I-Izumi...?" he stammered, wondering what she was doing and why he was reacting like this.  
"Everything will be okay, Itachi-kun," Izumi promised, looking straight into wide, beautiful dark eyes. She gave him a sincere smile. "It's only the first day, after all," she added cheerfully.  
Her hand was so warm. Everything about her was so warm. Itachi relaxed, eyes softening, when her words reached him. Then he gave her a tiny smile.  
The bell rang, breaking the moment.  
"Whoops," giggled Izumi, and Itachi felt disappointed when she removed her hand. "That's the five-minute warning. We better get going." She stood up and started brushing the grass stains off her pink skirt, while Itachi watched.  
"Izumi?"  
"Hm?" She looked down at him with a pause, the sunlight shadowing her features. There were no words to explain how or why, but it was in that moment that Itachi felt real peace.  
"Thank you."

                                                                                                   ∞∞∞

Kamano did not like Itachi Uchiha.  
No, that was an understatement. He hated the guy. There was just something about him that ticked off every guy in the class-no, the entire school.  
It wasn't that he was mean, or had bad-mouthed anybody who was rude to him, or even that he was egotistic, because surprisingly none of these applied. If anything, based on the past two months he had learned about Itachi Uchiha, the boy was a stiff. A living robot. A freak of nature. But a very quiet and polite one.  
That was the problem. Itachi was _perfect at everything_. Impossibly so.  
He was perfect in weapons...

  
_(One week into the Academy)_

  
 _Everyone was lined up outside on the training field for target practice. They were facing a line of targets in various sizes that went from as large as a wagon wheel to as small as a human head. Their sensei kept moving around to correct the position of their stances. On both the ground and the targets were a mess of shuriken and kunai, scattered aimlessly from failed effort. Some were quickly improving in their aims, managing to execute their throws more smoothly than others. Kamano was proud to think that he was one of those kids, as each of his kunai embedded into his target. Neither of his blades had reached the black circle centered in the middle, but neither did they hit the ground, which should be considered a major progress for his first few tries._  
 _Kamano smirked when his next kunai hit the target with a thud, getting slightly closer to the black circle. Rubbing a finger across his nose, he can almost see it now._  
 _Top of his class by next month. Most popular guy in class. Izumi Uchiha clinging onto his arm with beating hearts in her eyes._  
 _Their sensei always had everyone switch in random order, so eventually Kamano found himself next to the Uchiha kid._  
 _Glancing next to him, he watched as Itachi held up all four of his chosen kunai between his fingers, and sent them off almost effortlessly, his eyes never leaving the target._  
Moron, _he thought._ Nobody can do that many kunais _. When he looked over, he did a double-take in shock._  
 _All of them?! All four kunais were embedded into the very center of the target, cleanly and firmly._  
What...  
 _Gaping in disbelief, he slowly turned his pale, vein-throbbing face toward the Uchiha, who was oblivious to the attention he received._  
...the...  
 _Itachi prepared his next set of kunai, not even a hint of masochistic pride showing in his blank expression._  
...hell!  
 _And of course, Itachi's next set hit the dark circle of the target, barely nicking his previous ones._

  
He was perfect in classroom studies...

  
_(One month into the Academy)_

  
_"Alright, Kamano. What's the answer?"_  
 _"I don't know!" shouted Kamano, lazily. How the hell should he know? This wasn't even in the text book, which wasn't very reliable to begin with. Those text books were, like, twenty or thirty years old? Kamano just didn't take old stuff seriously. He found them very boring for his taste._  
 _Sensei frowned. "Then..." His eyes found Itachi, down Kamano's left. "Itachi?"_  
 _"The seal is for the Water Style: Water Bomb Jutsu," Itachi answered, without batting an eye._  
 _"Correct!"_  
 _Kamano was all tensed up with building rage. His blood was boiling white-hot down at the Uchiha kid who always, ALWAYS, sat with his crush. It made him even angrier that Izumi was giving the emotionless bastard a proud grin._  
 _"Keep that in mind, everyone. It'll be on the test."_  
Damn it!

  
He was perfect in sparring matches...

  
  
_(Almost two months into the Academy)_

_When his turn came up next on the class's sparring match, he grinned evilly when hearing who his opponent would be. No other than Itachi Uchiha, a.k.a. Mister Stuck-up._   
_"Good luck, Itachi-kun!" the girls were squealing at him (heck, even Izumi-chan, too!) as Itachi walked casually out into the center of the field. Kamono scoffed._   
_Well, that was going to change. This was the perfect opportunity to show that Uchiha stuck-up who was boss. He had trained hard for this moment. He was going to enjoy burying Itachi's face in the dirt beneath his heel for the whole class to see._   
_Kamano beckoned at his rival casually, an arrogant smirk creeping in his young features. "Itachi, come at me!" he mocked his opponent. Itachi just looked at him._   
_Their sensei came over and stepped in between them. When Itachi held up his hand sign, Kamano quickly repeated, almost forgetting the traditional gesture before a proper sparring ritual. He was just too pumped. When the sensei checked either sign, he nodded. "Alright," he said. Then he waved his hand down. "Begin!"_   
_With a furious yell, Kamano charged...but barely made two feet when he found himself flying through the air, feeling a pair of hands gripping his arm and shoulder in a surprisingly strong grip...the blue sky appeared in his view, zooming backwards, his stomach flipping over in panic...he shut his eyes, expecting his head to hit the ground with a heavy crack...only to land smoothly from his feet to his head, in which was cradled lightly at the heel of Itachi's foot like a pillow._   
_"...The...The match is over!" choked out a surprised sensei. When Kamano opened one eye with gritted teeth, they widened when seeing Itachi's infuriatingly and disgustingly blank expression. While his hands still had Kamano at his mercy, and he swore that when he looked carefully, the look on Itachi's face was almost...boredom!_   
_Kamano wanted to scream in rage. That bastard was dissing him! He swears that Itachi was laughing on the inside, he just knows it!_   
_Itachi then carefully set him down and straightened up. Kamano growled when the Uchiha looked over at the crowd of squealing girls and shocked-looking boys, but there was only one face that stood among them for both young males._   
_Izumi was beaming._

  
Hell, he was even perfect for the girls!  
Izumi included.  
The way they were all flocking around him, even from a distance, just to watch him walk. It was disgusting. His chances of becoming top in the class were flushing down the drain.  
But today...He grinned. Today he was confident that he had something that Itachi Uchiha didn't.  
A few more years of knowing Izumi. Including her birthday, which happened to be today. She was seven years old now.  
That morning, Kamano and his friends all had small gifts prepared for Izumi. Kamano scoffed. It wasn't new that even his own friends were infatuated with her, or all the guys in class for that matter, but as long as Itachi didn't have a gift ready, Kamano was satisfied.  
Most of the guys had chocolates, flowers, or ribbons to tie her hair up. Girly stuff. Well, they got another thing coming, because Kamano got her something that was pretty handy: arm and knee guards.  
He noticed that she sometimes struggled in sparring matches due to her fainting spells when it got too intense (something about her Sharingan draining her chakra too rapidly), and her elbows and knees always got scraped badly in the process. So he got her these. There was no need for a lovely young kunoichi-to-be such as herself to break anymore skin.  
When he and the guys spotted Itachi and Izumi walking together in the classroom, Izumi chatting to Itachi about something, Kamano jumped in front of them. "Good morning, Izumi-chan!" he said, trying to look cool.  
"Oh, good morning, Kamano!" Izumi said, smiling after briefly startled by his appearance. Itachi only stared at them. "How are you?"  
Kamano shrugged, hands in his pockets. "Fine, but today, you're gonna be even better!" He grinned when pulling a small, wrapped gift from behind his back and held it out to her with both hands. "Happy Birthday!"  
Izumi blinked twice, her mouth parting slightly. "Oh! Um..." She glanced briefly at Itachi, then back at Kamano. She then accepted the gift, forcing a warm smile on her face, though slightly uneasy with how awkward the situation became. "Thank you, Kamano-san...I-I can't believe you remembered!"  
"Hey, why don't you open it?" suggested Kamano. "You might like it."  
"Hah..." Izumi laughed weakly, and then started unwrapping her gift. Kamano's eyes flickered to Itachi, who didn't so much as react, or move.  
"Arm and leg guards?" Izumi said, holding them up with genuine interest. They were pink and purple, her usual colors.  
"For the sparring matches. Even experienced kunoichi who are great at taijutsu wear them."  
Izumi looked at Kamano and gave went to give him a hug. "I love them," she said. "Thank you, Kamano!" Kamano hugged her smaller frame back tightly, but glanced over her shoulder to smirk at Itachi. He still hadn't moved, or reacted.  
_Geez, does nothing phase this guy?_  
Soon after he released Izumi from the hug, the rest of the boys sprung into action, already offering their gifts to Izumi and wishing her a happy birthday with wide smiles. Izumi, though smiling politely, looked extremely uncomfortable with all the sudden attention she was receiving from her fan boys. "W-Wow, you all remembered, huh?" he heard her laugh weakly.  
Kamano looked at Itachi. Nothing.  
"It's your birthday, Izumi?" Izumi looked up in surprise to see the girls looking at her in surprise, but the girl who had spoken, the short-haired brunette with the painted stripes on her face, was Hana Inuzuka. One of the toughest and most popular girls in the whole freshmen class. "Why didn't you tell us? This is big!"  
"We should celebrate!" squealed a girl named Yukki, happily clasping her hands together. "Come hang out with us after school! We can get dango and cupcakes!"  
The girls, even Mari (Izumi's unintended archenemy) was agreeing at once to the idea of celebrating a birthday for another of their gender.  
Izumi was stunned. "R-Really?"  
"Yeah, come on!" Hana nodded, smirking at her stunned expression. "Believe it or not, my mom makes killer dango! And there's puppies too! It's a party every day in my clan, so it should be easy to celebrate yours! What do you say?"  
Izumi was amazed. This was it. An open opportunity to finally make some girl friends, to be truly accepted without jealousy or rivalry getting in the way, without needing to blend into their fan club for Itachi. Speaking of whom...Izumi glanced wordlessly back at Itachi, feeling torn and guilty.  
The reason why this had become so uncomfortable was that she hadn't told Itachi when her birthday was. The topic never came up. Heck, _she_ had forgotten it was her birthday today, only looking forward to another day at school with Itachi.  
In fact, she then realized, to her silent horror, that it meant _her mom_ had forgotten about her birthday. Never smiled or said a simple "Happy Birthday" to her this morning, merely telling her to have a nice day before she left for work. It broke her heart. Was her mom really that far gone since her father's death, or since they had moved in with her stern, elderly uncle?  
Tears formed in her eyes.  
"Hey, are you okay, Izumi-chan?" asked one the boys worriedly.  
Izumi gasped and wiped her eyes, before giving everyone a forced smile. "H-Hai, more than okay," she lied, her voice cracking. "It just means so much to me, that's all. It sounds like fun, Hana. Thank you, everybody!"  
The girls cheered, and started pulling a still sniffling Izumi toward their desks, ready to plan her unexpected party at the Inuzuka's house.  
Kamano smirked, clearly misinterpreting Izumi's reaction for tears of joy. Then once again, Kamano looked at Itachi, who still hadn't moved or reacted. He frowned. What the hell? You'd think there would be some kind of reaction to….Then it struck him. Itachi hadn't moved _at all_. He was as still as a statue. Even his eyes were hollow and unseeing behind the shadow of his bangs. And when he looked more closely... _there!_ The Uchiha's mouth was formed into a tense line.  
He looked as if somebody had died.  
So he _had_ gotten to Itachi. Kamano smirked in triumph and walked back to his seat with his hands folded lazily behind his head. With one eye opened, he watched as Sensei entered the classroom and everyone but Itachi moved to their seats. Sensei looked down at the Uchiha, who was still immobile.  
"Er...Itachi? Your seat?" he said.  
Finally, Itachi nodded his head. "Hai," he whispered, before walking in a daze back to his usual seat, but this time without Izumi sitting next to him.  
Kamano savored the sight of Itachi's quiet state throughout the entire class, even though Izumi kept looking across the rows of desks toward Itachi, looking extremely guilty.  
_Score,_ he thought smugly. He was one step closer to beating Itachi at something, and that was for Izumi's affections. Because this time, the genius lost to him.

                                                                                                   ∞∞∞

"Itachi-kun, wait!"  
Numbly, Itachi turned around to see Izumi running toward him while the bells of the Ninja Academy kept ringing, concluding their day. She stopped in front of him, catching her breath, her eyes wide and desperate. "Itachi-kun, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean for this to happen, I promise!"  
"Why are you apologizing?" asked Itachi quietly. "It's your birthday. You have nothing to be sorry for."  
"No, but...I'm sorry I forgot to tell you before," said Izumi in a small voice. "I even forgot today was my birthday because Okaasan..." Her voice choked and tears formed in her eyes, causing Itachi to step forward. His eyes now lit up with concern, the first emotion he had shown all day.  
"My kaasan forgot," Izumi squeaked, rubbing her eyes furiously. "She didn't even remind me..."  
"Was that why you were going to cry?" he asked, remembering when she looked ready to cry this morning while surrounded by all the classmates.  
Izumi chuckled bitterly. "Yeah, that's why. How could she forget? I always knew she changed, but ever since we moved in with my great-uncle..."  
"I'm sure she has a good explanation," said Itachi slowly, but he knew better. He couldn't remember the last time his parents had ever celebrated his birthday. It was one month from now, which made him realize that Izumi was a month older than him. It was hard to believe, since she was not only smaller than him, but still younger in spirit.  
Although he didn't mind, this reminded Itachi that he was going to make sure Sasuke's first birthday was something worth remembering. But he really wished...for Izumi...when Kamano and all the boys gave her a gift…..he wished more than anything that he had something to give her, too.  
Izumi sniffed, managing to compose herself. "It doesn't matter. I won't hate her for it," she mumbled. Then she met Itachi's eyes. "I'm really, really sorry about today, Itachi-kun. Kamano...I don't know why he did that...but I just..."  
"He seems to really care about you," said Itachi softly. It didn't escape his notice that Kamano held a certain interest toward Izumi that, admittedly, made Itachi feel cold inside. Cold and...possessive. Although today proved that he had no right to feel that way, even though he still didn't know what that feeling was.  
Izumi was his friend. _His_ friend. Itachi had only ever took her companionship for granted, until now. Maybe that was why it hurt so much.  
Izumi bit her lip. "Yeah," she admitted, twiddling her fingers. "He can be insensitive a lot, like today, but he can be sweet when he wants to be."  
"Hn." Itachi seriously doubted that, but he didn't argue. Izumi simply preferred seeing the good in all people.  
"And you care about me, too, right?" she asked, suddenly worried.  
Itachi stared at her. The sky was growing orange and red from the sunset, lighting her face in a certain pink glow the reflected from her entrancing doe-brown eyes. "Ah." He nodded.  
Izumi smiled.  
"Izumi!" They turned to see the girls crowding together, waving at them. Among them was Hana, who was the one who called out, "Izumi-chan, you coming?"  
"Yeah, I'm coming! Oh!" Izumi turned to Itachi. "You can come with us!" she told him. "I'm pretty sure they wouldn't mind..."  
Itachi quickly shook his head. "No, that's okay," he said, already knowing too well that they wouldn't mind _at all_. "This is _your_ night. I have homework, anyway...and I promised Sasuke I would play with him."  
"Oh, that's right," Izumi nodded, smiling at the idea of Itachi talking to baby Sasuke. She remembered how much the brothers adored each other, so much that it melted her heart and, at the same time, made her a little envious. If only Sasuke would accept her, somehow... "I'll see you tomorrow, Itachi-kun?"  
Itachi nodded, giving her a small (though slightly strained) smile. "Hai." Then, after a pause, he whispered, "Happy Birthday, Izumi..."  
Feeling better than before, though slightly hesitant, Izumi suddenly gave him a hug. Itachi immediately went still, not moving as Izumi wrapped her arms around his neck. He could feel her heart beating with an upbeat rhythm. "Thank you, Itachi-kun," she whispered, before pulling back and leaving.  
"..." Itachi watched her scamper off to join the other girls, going down the road in the opposite direction until they were gone from his sight. After what seemed like forever, without another word, Itachi turned around and walked straight home.  
So Izumi was finally being accepted. That much was obvious. Itachi was happy for her.  
He really was.  
_Really._  
Itachi sighed. He just wanted to go home. He missed Sasuke.  
Then...he felt the strong urge to learn a new jutsu. The Academy was far too easy and Itachi was getting impatient with 'easy.'  
When he arrived home, after greeting his mother, Itachi went straight into his brother's nursery. There his baby brother was sitting in his crib, squealing and laughing happily when seeing his big brother. Itachi chuckled and reached down to pick him. "Hi, Sasuke," he whispered, his smile growing when the baby picked at his hair strands. The prodigy kissed Sasuke's chubby cheek, hugging the little body to him, close to his heart.  
He knew without a doubt in his mind that Sasuke was the light of his life. Always have been and always will be. Even as he held his baby brother, all the previous stress of the day began to wear off from Sasuke's bright, innocent smile. There was a single tooth growing there, making Itachi's heart clench at how quickly Sasuke was growing up, and was yet still so small in his arms.  
"You want to play, Sasuke?" he cooed, and Sasuke responded with a happy squeal, making Itachi laugh.  
For over an hour, Itachi played around with baby Sasuke on the floor. He was delighted to see Sasuke being able to crawl around with such confidence and speed, his stuffed dinosaur's tail gripped tightly into his tiny hand. The baby sat on his rear and sucked on the dinosaur's head with wide, black eyes looking back at Itachi, as though waiting for sign of appraisal from the older boy.  
"Sasuke, come to me," Itachi beckoned, crossing his legs and holding out his hands in supplication. "Come to me, otutou."  
Baby Sasuke, his dinosaur tossed to the side, leapt on all fours and started crawling happily toward Itachi, whose heart felt like it was going to burst with love. Though it was only crawling, Itachi felt so proud of his brother that he wanted to cry.  
The joys of being a big brother…  
Clapping and cheering as Sasuke came closer, Itachi gasped when the baby finally reached him and crawled into his lap, smiling his wide, single-tooth smile. Itachi gathered Sasuke to him and hugged him close to his chest, breathing in the baby's soft, spiky hair. He closed his eyes to savor the moment.  
He also remembered the way Izumi hugged him earlier, feeling so warm and affectionate…and then the next moment, it had gone away when she had. At least Sasuke wasn't going anywhere, he thought.  
Then he heard the front door slide open. Itachi placed Sasuke down, before standing up. The baby looked up at him in confusion. "Sorry, Sasuke," said Itachi, smiling, "we'll play some other time, okay?"  
Deciding to leave him to crawl around the room for a while longer, Itachi left Sasuke there and went to leave the room. Sasuke started babbling in protest after him. After one final look, Itachi whispered to him, "Thank you," before sliding the door shut.  
His father was home from work, still in his police uniform. He was handing a sack to his mother, when Itachi approached him eagerly. "Welcome home, Otousan!" he said, and then got right to the point. "Please teach me a jutsu!"  
Fugaku looked surprise. "Jutsu? Aren't they teaching you at the Academy?"  
"It's too easy," answered Itachi.  
Fugaku smiled. "I guess it would be for you," he said, knowingly. He glanced at Mikoto, who was smiling proudly. "Wait for me at the training grounds."  
"Okay."  
"Make sure you're home by dinner," said Mikoto to Itachi.  
"Got it!" the young prodigy promised, before scampering out the door.  
Itachi couldn't wait to see what his father would teach him today. Certainly something better than the Academy could ever offer.


	4. Protector

**Chapter Four**

**Protector**

  
"Look over there! It's Itachi!"  
"Huh?"  
"Oh, look, he's walking! He's so cool!"  
"Ah, he's looking this way! AAAAHHHH!" The girls all squealed in delight.  
Meanwhile, Kamano and his friends sat completely dumbfounded back in their desks, veins throbbing with anger at the sounds of the girls' high-pitched squealing. They were all huddled near the classroom windows, overseeing the grassy fields of the playground outside, with completely star-struck expressions. Izumi was among them, looking just as happy and flushed while looking over the girls' shoulders to peer out the window.  
Kamano was seething silently. "Oh, this is _not_ good! Don't you think, gentlemen?" he spoke between clenched teeth. He couldn't believe his eyes when watching Izumi become one with the group of girls fawning over Itachi. His previous strategy of bringing her closer to him had backfired. If anything, her infatuation with Itachi had become more obvious.  
It was those girls' fault. They had corrupted her and turned his Izumi-chan into... _one of them!_ Kamano wanted to smack his head across his desk and scream.  
Hioshi nodded with wide eyes. "For his sake, if Itachi gets swept away by all of this and gets the wrong idea..."  
"Yeah, I agree," said Shinto, scowling.  
"He's so stuck up!" Kamano low muttering rose into an animalistic growl, but neither of the girls heard him.  
From down below, Izumi could see Itachi wandering around on the field, deep in thought as usual.  
It had been nearly three weeks since her birthday at the Inuzuka household. She had been getting together with the girls ever since, especially Hana. Sure, there was still Mari who still had a thing against her, seeing Izumi as a threat for stealing _her_ Itachi, but Izumi wanted to show them all that she can share.  
Okay, maybe 'share' was not the right word, because Itachi did not belong to anyone but himself, and certainly not to her. Izumi respected him enough for that and she didn't feel worthy to hold that claim yet, but someday...she hoped...  
She then remembered when she had been at Hana's house, surrounded by girls, ninja dogs, and an rowdy infant named Kiba, they had actually baked a cake together, throwing on multiple colors of icing, sugar, sprinkles, and chocolate syrup. The kitchen was a mess by the time they were done, the dogs licking the icing and flour off the floor and walls, but the cake was a colorful heaven of sugary delight. They even put up seven candles for her to blow out, because everyone deserves to make a wish on their birthday.  
Izumi made her wish and blew out her candles. Almost immediately, the girls excitedly demanded to know what she wished for, but Izumi only smiled and drew her finger across her lips, saying, "Not telling, or it won't come true."  
Her wish: _I want to become a powerful ninja like Itachi-kun...and I want to marry him someday._  
She knew that last part was silly, that probably every little girl who saw Itachi thought the same thing, or that her wish was possibly one-sided on Itachi's part, and that it was very unlikely her wish would come true...but Izumi couldn't help herself. Seven year-olds can dream big.  
So here she was now, officially welcomed into their "Itachi Fanclub," which not too long ago had made her feel too uncomfortable to even consider joining, for Itachi's sake. Even now, standing among them as they continued squealing for Itachi whenever he was within their eyesight, it still made her feel a little uncomfortable, knowing that she had willingly joined them for the sake of being accepted genuinely as a friend, not as a rival (not yet, anyway). Also, deep down, she always felt that there had been a little fangirl in her somewhere, otherwise she would not have admired and crushed on Itachi for as long as she had known him, and a part of her wanted to know what it felt like to just let it out in the open instead of letting it continue to fester. So, to make this work, she planned to make sure that she and the fangirls were in far enough distances from Itachi, and _then_ she would allow herself to squeal.  
Letting loose these hidden, girly emotions excited her..and unnerved her, too. If Itachi ever caught her making a fool of herself...in this, guilty-pleasure…Izumi blushed in mortification at the very thought.  
Okay, so she pleasured herself in a little fangirl-ing over Itachi from afar now…so sue her! She had always thought Itachi was attractive, from the moment she first laid eyes on him, and that he really did deserve all the girls in the world to be admiring him, even if no other would ever deserve him back. _This way, he can know that he is loved,_ Izumi thought with a nod to herself, watching Itachi out the window in his usual pondering, like the day when she first spoke to him.  
But at the same time, she will continue to protect him by buying the space he needs. After all this time knowing him, Itachi was still antisocial and extremely uncomfortable in huge crowds. Izumi had no intention of becoming one of those people. It made her happy enough to know that she was one of the few people that Itachi was comfortable with. It made her feel special.  
"It's me! He's looking at me!" Mari squealed, her face and nose pressed against the window with wide, violet eyes.  
"No, at me!" protested Yuki.  
Izumi felt her face heat up when seeing Itachi calmly looking toward the window and edged further out of sight behind Hana, hoping he didn't see her.  
A girl gasped. "He's walking!"  
"Itachi is walking!" screamed another, and all the other girls squealed at once. "Oh, he's so cool! AAAHHHHH!"  
Izumi looked over to see Itachi walking away, probably deciding to find somewhere else to think after seeing the girls. He had very sharp eyes, after all. The speed of his physical prowess during target practices were proof of that. But since the girls mentioned it, Izumi took notice of his walking and recalled how light his footsteps were when she tagged along with him.  
_Oh, wow, his walking is cool,_ she thought in amazement. She had never really paid attention to the way he walks until now. Ninja footsteps. _I wonder what he's thinking about right now._  
Behind the oblivious group of girls followed a loud _slam._  
Kamano was now standing up, red-faced and mortified, eyes white with anger.  
Itachi this, Itachi that. Itachi the cool one. Itachi the popular one. Itachi the unbeatable one. Itachi the smart one. It was always about Itachi Uchiha. This whole thing was getting so unbelievably ridiculous that Kamono could not take anymore.  
Either with words or fists, it was time to end this madness once and for all.  
"It's decided, then," he growled, and cracked his knuckles. "Fellas, I think it's time we go out and have a little _chat_ with Itachi Uchiha like real men."  
Hioshi and Shinto stood with him. "Right," they echoed.  
Hana was the first to turn around to see Kamano and his pals march out of the classroom with determined looks. "What's up with _them?_ " she wondered aloud, raising an eyebrow, while Izumi also turned around in time to see them leave.  
_Kamano?_ she thought with confusion.  
Kamano strode in between Shinto and Hioshi down the classroom hallway, hands in their pockets and eyes narrowed with purpose. To all the students they passed by, one would have thought these boys were stirring up an air for trouble, looking all intimidating and noticeable as they did, strolling by like a ninja gang would among civilians.  
As they were nearing the exit of the school leading to the playground, Kamano was in the middle of planning how to confront Itachi...when he and his friends all crashed straight into a large and thick shadow. The force from their speed-walking caused them to tumble back unceremoniously to the floor.  
"OWW! Hey!" Kamano shouted, jumping back up to his feet, raising a fist angrily. "What's the big idea? Watch where you're going, idiot!"  
"Idiot?!" Kamano's stomach plummeted in sudden fear and realization at the booming voice, when the large figure revealed himself. "Who are you calling 'idiot'?"  
It was Iwao Akimichi, the Academy's most feared bully among the senior class. Big stomach, big arms, thick neck, spiky hair, and a uni-brow. "You guys must be freshmen!" he spat, looking above them. He cracked his large knuckles loudly, causing the boys to flinch. "So, you run into someone, and call 'em an idiot...?"  
The boys felt a shudder through them, their instincts telling them to run, for Iwao Akimichi was not only part of the clan that used Expansion Jutsu, but he was also known by the students as "Stone Fist," because his knuckles were so hard and his punches so strong that they could break ground without having to use his clan's jutsu (some could argue that it was really due to excellent chakra control, but it was hard to say).  
"Hold on! _You_ ran into us!" shouted Kamano, who stood his ground despite his nerves. He also failed to notice that Itachi had walked right past them and into the school hallway, having no knowledge of what the boys were going to do to him before this interruption.  
This only angered the Akimichi. "What was that?!" he roared, throwing back his fist. The boys screeched and fell back as Iwao's fist smashed into the tiled floor, causing a few large cracks to split. Fearing for their lives, Kamano, Hioshi, and Shinto turned hightail and ran as fast as they could.  
"Hold it!" shouted Iwao, running after them.  
The first thing that Kamano, Hioshi, and Shinto saw down the hallway within their panic-driven sight was the Uchiha emblem.  
Itachi had been outside to wander around the field with his private thoughts. He had just gone back inside to find Izumi when he was suddenly grabbed from behind and turned around by, surprisingly, Kamano, Hioshi, and Shinto...and found himself facing a charging Akimichi. "Please, help us!" whimpered Shinto, as they huddled close behind Itachi in fear.  
"Eh? Who the hell are you?!" growled Iwao, stopping and looming a whole foot taller than Itachi. "A friend of theirs?"  
Itachi looked from side to side at either boys, inwardly sighing. Clearly they had foolishly gotten themselves mixed into some trouble with some random bully who preyed on the small and weak. Though not fond of Kamano and the others, he didn't want to see them get hurt, so he might as well help them anyway. But he hoped to be gentle.  
After a quick size-up on his opponent, Itachi signaled two fingers for a challenge. The young Uchiha's indifference pissed Iwao off.  
"GUHR! All you freshmen this year are so..." He raised a large fist above his head. "STUCK-UP!" His infamous "stone fist" came charging down toward Itachi's head...only to be caught by two small, but surprisingly strong hands. Soon Iwao found himself flipping forward through the air, based on one strong pressure point on his wrist, and crashed heavily across the marble ground. He blacked out after that.  
Itachi Uchiha stood above him, his hands still gripping the larger kid's wrist.  
Everyone was staring at Itachi in surprise and wonder. "Wow!" Kamano, Hioshi, and Shinto gasped with wide eyes, while Itachi gently put down Iwao's limp arm with serious expression.  
"Take him to the infirmary," he ordered a random boy, who stuttered in reply, "O-Okay," before taking off to get help.  
Kamano stepped toward Itachi with whole new perspective shining so clearly in his expression. Just like that, the boy who claimed an ultimate rivalry on Itachi Uchiha suddenly began to respect him highly. "Wow! You are really strong, Itachi-kun!" he blurted out, all hard feelings placed aside.  
Surprised, Itachi glanced behind him. "-Kun?" he echoed, confused. Did Kamano...just call him his 'friend?'  
Hioshi had stars in his eyes. "Even the upperclassmen are easy for you, Itachi-san!" he exclaimed happily.  
"-San?" he repeated dumbly. Suddenly there was formality? This was too weird. Itachi started to get up and walk away, but Kamano and Shinto walked ahead of him, Hioshi trailing more to the side.  
"Move it, move aside!" shouted Shinto, marching through the crowd with Kamano beside him. "Make way for Itachi-sama!"  
His hands clenched into fists. _"-Sama?!"_ whispered Itachi, feeling like he was shrinking smaller and smaller from the many eyes turned toward him now. Some were star-struck, others were afraid. Some were skeptical (mostly the upperclassmen), even laughing at him while teasing,"Oi, look, it's Itachi-sama!"  
"Make way!" shouted Kamano, his loud voice breaking through the crowd. "It's Itachi-sama, master shinobi!"  
Itachi felt completely miserable and embarrassed, hiding his red face behind his bangs. Stop it...He really wished he was invisible. They were only making things worse. He begged silently, Please stop it...don't...  
No matter what he did, no matter where he went, or how people saw him...it always was the same.  
Itachi knew the looks from the kids surrounding him.  
While some may be calling him 'master' just to tease him, Itachi could feel the real meaning behind the name from the many other gazes: _Freak._  
_Itachi-sama._  
 _Freak._  
When they reached the classroom, based on Kamano and the boys' loud telling, the rest of the class had heard right away about what Itachi had done and were soon gathered around the Uchiha excitedly. The girls were squealing with sparkling eyes and the guys slapping him on the back to congratulate him. It seemed that every one of them had been tormented by the Stone Fist and his upperclass thugs, in the hallway and in the playground. Even outside of school.  
Izumi was smiling happily for Itachi when Kamano replayed the story on what had happened in the school hallway (leaving out the part about what him and the boys were originally planning for Itachi at the time). "...then Itachi-kun here caught the blow and just flipped him over like it was nothing!" exclaimed Kamano confidently, who had swung an arm around the slumping Itachi's shoulders. "He didn't get back up! You should have seen his face!" Everyone was laughing and very few boys were skeptical.  
_Yep, that sounds like Itachi-kun, alright,_ Izumi thought proudly as she giggled with the others. If it had been any other kid, nobody would have believed it. As far as she knew, Itachi was unbeatable.  
When she looked toward Itachi, her smile faded.  
Seemingly oblivious to everyone else, Itachi looked like he was shrinking into himself, his shoulders slumped, fists clenched to his sides, and his eyes hidden in the shadow of his bangs. His jaw was clenched, and he looked to be trembling, even though Kamano still had his arm on Itachi, unaware of the Uchiha's silent distress.  
Changing from pride to worry instantly, Izumi knew that something was wrong. _Itachi-kun?_  
As soon the bell rang, Sensei entered the classroom and everyone got into their seats. Izumi sat next to Itachi in their usual spots, and attempted to smile at him...but he didn't look up at her once.  
"Are you okay?" she whispered to him, while Sensei was announcing the page number for Earth Style ninjutsu techniques.  
"Hn," grunted Itachi, only focusing his eyes on the board. He continued to ignore her for the rest of the class, his mouth tense the entire time. Was he giving her the cold-shoulder?  
This annoyed Izumi. Normally she can take his silence in stride (he was silent during class except when answering questions), but right now, his behavior was odd and hurtful, already getting old. Itachi just made friends out of the whole classroom, something that seemed miraculous in her eyes...so what was his problem?  
Looking around, she noticed with a start that everyone, including Kamano, were practically drooling while _staring_ at Itachi with lovey-dovey eyes.  
Izumi sweated and looked down. _Well, that wasn't creepy at all!_ she thought to herself, uneasily. Okay, maybe it wasn't that hard to figure out. Itachi was shy, after all. She will have to wait until after school, when it's just the two of them, and then Itachi would be more comfortable to talk to her.

                                                                                                             ∞∞∞

"See you tomorrow, Itachi-kun!"  
"Can't wait to see you fight!"  
"You're awesome, Itachi-sama!"  
"Whoo-hoo, Itachi-sama!"  
"Bye, Itachi-kun!"  
"Later, Itachi-kun! Bye, Izumi-chan!"  
"Okay, bye everyone!" answered Izumi, smiling at her classmates while Itachi walked ahead of her with an indifferent expression. Then Izumi ran to catch up with Itachi and walked beside him, clutching her books tightly to her chest.  
"What a day, huh?" she told him, smiling. "Was it true what Kamano said? That you took down an upperclassman? I'm glad you didn't get hurt, but I knew you wouldn't either!"  
Itachi said nothing.  
"It sounded very brave of you to stand up for Kamano and his friends," Izumi went on, trying to ignore his silent treatment with some enthusiasm. "I wish I could have seen it myself, because I know Iwao Akimichi is a big, mean bully who likes to start fights with defenseless kids! I heard that he's so bad that the _teachers_ are scared of him. It's really cool that you beat him, Itachi-kun. He definitely won't try to hurt you again after that!"  
Itachi still said nothing. They were approaching one of the trees in the forest near their compound.  
"And Itachi-kun, I'm so happy for you, too," added Izumi, skipping a step. "You made friends with the whole class just like that. Even Kamano like you now."  
Itachi stopped in front of the tree, his back facing her. After a long pause, he then spoke slowly, "They are _not_ my friends."  
Izumi's eyes widened when Itachi turned his head slightly, enough so that she could see him frowning. "Is this how admiration is gained," he said softly, "how friendship is offered...by resorting to violence? By hurting others to gain approval?"  
When Izumi didn't say anything, Itachi placed a hand on the tree trunk. Then he tilted his head up in thought. Izumi was confused. "Itachi-kun?" Again, she wondered what was going on in that head of is. She always had.  
"It's _always_ the same," whispered Itachi, his bitter tone shocking her. "That's how everyone sees me, how they'll always see me...Itachi- _sama_ , their personal weapon!" His fists clenched. "Why couldn't they just leave it be?"  
"Itachi-kun, why are you acting like this? This isn't like you!" said Izumi, worriedly.  
"Oh, really?" Itachi turned to face her now, his face tense but forcibly blank. "I overpowered that kid because it was necessary at the time," he said, his tone more calmer and indifferent in a way that made Izumi shiver a little. "He charged and I flipped him over to prevent a fight. I took no pleasure in injuring him, but apparently Kamano and his comrades did. Suddenly they're calling me 'friend,' 'sir,' and _'master'?_ " He looked at the grass at his feet. "It seems that everyone is already deluding themselves into thinking that way. I don't want or need their friendship just because I beat a bully that I only just met...They don't understand. They'll _never_ understand...nobody will..." His eyes grew haunted, suddenly recalling the violence and bloodshed he had watched during the Third Great Ninja War.  
He did not strive to become a great ninja to encourage more violence. And yet that was all they saw, because it was all they wanted to see. They would have laughed, ignored, or disagreed with his real reasons.  
"But at least they're acknowledging you." Itachi looked up, startled at Izumi's quiet voice. She was frowning at him, clearly annoyed. "I don't know about you, Itachi-kun, but I think you're lucky."  
"Lucky?"  
"You have a lot of reasons for people to like you, even the guys, and I think it's stupid that it's taken them this long to see it like I do," said Izumi loudly, placing her hands on her hips. "And now that they're finally being nice to you, you're still not going to take a chance to try being friends with them? So maybe their reasons are silly, but we go to a Ninja Academy, and my parents always said that sometimes making friends doesn't start out the way you want it to be. They can even start out being mean to each other. You think I don't remember how they threw rocks at you, or how they called you names just because you're talented? I hated watching that and not being able to stop them, and I don't want them to go back to doing that to you just because you decided they're not good enough to be your friends.  
"I know why you're mad, Itachi-kun, and I think you're right to be," continued Izumi, "but if you don't try to make something out of this right now and treat it like its nothing, you'll end up being 'stuck-up,' just like what they said!" She pointed at him confidently, making Itachi jump. "This is your chance to prove to them wrong, that you're a nice person that doesn't want to hurt anyone if he can help it."  
Itachi stared at her, looking doubtful. "You want me to pretend?" he said slowly.  
Izumi blinked. Then she started giggling. Itachi was bemused. That girl can be so weird. She can be boiling at one point, and bubbly the next. It was hard to keep up sometimes.  
"No," Izumi finally said, still grinning. "Don't pretend, nobody likes fakers. Just be yourself, Itachi-kun. Give them some of your attention, that's all. In fact…" Her eyes twinkled and stretched her hands behind her back, "...I think I know what you can do for them that will make them like you even more."  
Itachi just stared, a little wary of what she was thinking. "Uh...what?"  
"You can tutor them."  
"...Tutor them?"  
"Yeah! You're the best in the class and you always get one hundred percents on tests, so it's perfect. And, um..." She suddenly hesitated, the toe of her foot digging the grass shyly. "I also hoped that...you could help me, too?"  
"Don't you have your own friends to help you?" Itachi asked.  
Izumi blushed furiously, thinking back on what they had been doing today. Watching Itachi walking around the playground alone from the window during lunchtime, looking so cool...like now ( _Ack, stop it, Izumi! He's right there!_ she thought in horror). "Yeah, well...it's actually me that helps them," she admitted, "with their studies on genjutsus, but they're not really interested in sparring. You know how they are, heh heh," she laughed nervously, feeling her face heat up when Itachi tilted his head at her. "But I know you better and you're clearly a better opponent. Will you please spar with me, Itachi-kun?"  
"..."  
"..."  
"...I'll think about it."  
Izumi's eyes bulged. " _Huh?_ You shouldn't have to think about it! I'm asking for your help here!" she cried. "I have goals, too, you know! And you're always-Hey, where are you going? Itachi Uchiha, don't you walk away from me! Will you spar with me or not? Hey, Itachi-kun!"  
With Izumi stomping after him in her childish frustration, her cheeks comically puffed and pouty, Itachi had just started walking calmly home. And he had a small, amused smile on his face as he listened to her ramble behind him.  
Itachi also wondered if he should tell Izumi that he could sense her chakra from far away, so he could easily recognize her hiding among his fangirls (there was a reason he looked up toward the window and heard muffled squealing), but then decided against it. For now.  
"Itachi-kun! Come on! I promise I won't call you Itachi-sama!"  
That was one secret that he will keep from her for the time being. The other one...  
His smile faded.  
_The shinobi world is violent and cruel._ He looked at Izumi, who had caught up with him and walked beside him. _Izumi….you want to be a shinobi to honor your Otousan….but I….I wonder what it will do to you in the end._  
"Itachi-kun?" asked Izumi, beside him with curious eyes. "I was wondering….What do you think about when you're alone?"  
Itachi was silent, his expression ever unreadable. Then he heard crows caw and looked up toward the sky to see a flock of them fly overhead. "….I think you'd find my thoughts pretty boring," he answered finally.  
A black feather drifted down in front of his face, making him stop, watching it drift until it landed on the blade tips of the grass near his feet. In front of two young Uchiha perched a crow.  
Itachi stared at it, and it stared back. Then he stepped forward. Izumi watched in silence as Itachi approached the crow with light footsteps before kneeling down.  
"Hello," he said quietly. "Do you remember me?" The crow cawed as if in reply. Itachi reached out and stroked its glossy, black feathers, his expression calm and relaxed like the bird's. Izumi was amazed.  
"He's not afraid of you," she said, smiling excitedly.  
Itachi ran his fingers through the bird's feathers, almost thoughtfully, before holding out a fist. The crow jumped and perched on his wrist, ruffling its feathers casually as Itachi stood up and turned toward Izumi.  
"Itachi-kun….?" whispered Izumi with wide eyes, as he came closer with the crow. Her hands fidgeted together nervously.  
"It's alright," said Itachi, smiling at her assuredly, before nodding at the crow. "He won't hurt you."  
After some hesitation, Izumi slowly lifted a hand, flinching slightly when the crow ruffled its feathers briefly and squawked. Then when her hand slowly came closer, Itachi gently took it and guided it to the bird's glossy feathers along the wing. Relaxing, Izumi smiled and laughed softly when she started petting the crow's feathers with Itachi's free hand still grasping hers. "He's cute," she whispered.  
Itachi was watching her, looking pleased. His fingers entwined with hers in the feathers. Izumi was still looking at the crow, but her pulse quickened. Her cheeks were blushing pink. "Is he your friend?"  
Itachi nodded and looked toward the sky where a murder of more flew overhead. "They all are." Then he looked at the crow on his arm. Memories of falling three hundred feet came flooding back….death called away by a crow's caw. They had called him back to life.  
_Nobody wants to die, right?_  
"People avoid them because…." said Itachi, watching as Izumi stroked the bird, "...they are seen as a bad omen. Like war, madness, death….People are afraid of crows because they're supposed to represent evil, but….." Itachi frowned. "….but I like them, because they can be our protectors." Izumi looked at him, intrigued. "They remind me of ninja. They're misunderstood, I think."  
Izumi nodded. Then she chuckled. "You know what I think?"  
Itachi looked at her, curious. "Hn?"  
"I think you're like a crow, Itachi-kun," she told him with a gentle smile.  
"…."  
The crow cawed at that, and Izumi giggled at Itachi's dumbfounded look. Then he smiled, enjoying Izumi's cheerful laughter and the fact that her fingers were still heartily entwined with his own in the feathers.  
They were still petting the crow together for a while longer, until the bird took off from Itachi's arm to join the rest of its brethren. While Izumi waved good-bye to the crow, Itachi was still watching her with a new resolve growing in his heart.  
_I'll be your crow, Izumi,_ he vowed.

                                                                                                         ∞∞∞

Izumi was running to school with an excited smile on her face. In her arms was a pink cardboard box that contained a small, chocolate pudding cake with custard in the center. She made it herself. It was for Itachi.  
Today was his birthday: June 9. He was now seven years old, like her. It was still hard to believe he was a month younger, since he appeared older in every way. And she knew it still weirded Itachi out, but for some silly reason, it made her feel proud that she actually beat him at something. Not that being born first could actually be helped (although, her mother had said she was two months premature, so she could have been actually a month younger than Itachi if she had reached her due date).  
She wanted to surprise him with this cake. She worked really hard on it last night with her mother's help. Normally, she walked with Itachi to school every morning, but she wanted Itachi to find his cake right where his seat was.  
_But what if he gets embarrassed?_ Izumi worried. Itachi is a very private person! What if he didn't even like chocolate...or cake? She had never really seen him eat any sweets, because his lunches were always healthy, like onigiri and cabbage (she wondered how he even _liked_ cabbage). Maybe she should have waited until he came by her house to pick her up, or after school, when they could go back to her house where she would have left the cake and showed it to him, then. Maybe she should have...  
Well, it was too late now. She was almost at the school and probably had a less than a five minute head-start to get everything set until Itachi caught up with her. He was a fast runner, so she had to hurry. She will have to find out for herself whether he likes sweets or not. And if he got embarrassed for all the public affection, then he can suck it up, because Izumi was going to show him that she remembered his birthday! And everyone else will know it, too, even Kamano.  
Izumi was happy to know that Itachi had taken her advice and didn't push away Kamano and his pals like he had previously promised to do. For the past week, he was letting them surround him with pleas and insistences on him teaching them a few tricks. Itachi still doesn't talk much to them, especially when they did all the chatting anyway, but one time he actually interrupted and said to Kamano directly with a calm, polite tone, "I heard that you needed help on memorizing some of the Elemental Hand-signs in class."  
Then Kamano, who looked offended, typically replied with his nose in the air, "It's not that I need help. Sensei's making us study hand-signs that are not in the text book. I question his teaching, that's all, so it's no wonder we can't follow along."  
"Speak for yourself," Shinto had said, and Kamano glared at him.  
Again, Itachi had gradually offered to show them the right way to form 'difficult' hand-signs and to help them study for math tests, in which they finally accepted. Izumi had seen the whole thing with Hana and Yuki nearby. She was happy that Itachi was making an effort to socialize.  
_Although, it would be nice if Itachi agreed to help me, too,_ thought Izumi, a little grudgingly. _But I'm happy for him. I'll train hard to prove myself to him, and then he'll want to spar with me. In a way, he's like my rival, too!_  
"OOF! Oww!" Izumi crashed into someone and fell on her rear, managing to save the cake box with both arms. She looked up to give an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I didn't-" Then her eyes widened, a gasp escaping from her when the person turned around.  
"Eh, what the hell's this? Seems that freshmen have an annoying habit of not watching where they're going! What am I, invisible?"  
Bigger, taller, and scarier Iwao Akamichi. Flanked by two guys his age, skinny but vicious-looking preteens. Izumi gulped, suddenly feeling terrified. Of all the older students she had to crash into...! This had also happened to Kamano, but it had only been Iwao at the time. And they were huge in her young eyes! It wouldn't be smart to provoke them.  
"N-No, I'm sorry," squeaked Izumi, shrinking back slightly as she slowly began to stand up. She quickly bowed her head. "I didn't mean to, I'm sorry. I wasn't looking where I going, so I'll just..." She made to turn in the other directly, but ended up walking into another taller guy with spiky hair and a nose ring, blocking her path and sneering down at her. The other guy behind her was wearing a cap that pulled straight down over his brow, making his eyes look like narrow slits.  
"Hey, lookie here, Iwao," Cap-guy said with a grin, reaching out and moving the long hair from her back to reveal the red-and-white Uchiha fan, making Izumi flinch. "We got ourselves Uchiha bait."  
"Uchiha, huh?!" Izumi felt a large, meaty hand grab the back of her high-collar and force her around to face the mean-looking Akimichi. He growled and gave her a rough shake that rattled her head. "Just my luck! Did you know I ran into one of you Uchiha brats and made a fool out of me? You must be a friend of his! That little stuck-up is going to think twice before messing with me when I'm through with him...but until then...Open that box!"  
Eyes widening further, Izumi looked down at the cake box in her hands, then bit her lip and shook her head. Iwao grew angrier and shook her again.  
"Give it here!"  
When Izumi still refused, Iwao grabbed the box.  
"No!" shouted Izumi, struggling to hold on, but then Cap and Spiky grabbed her arms from either sides, causing her grip on the box to slip as the large boy snatched it away. She watched in panic when a smirking Iwao opened the box to see the chocolate cake. It said _Happy Birthday, Itachi_ in yellow icing letters. Iwao sneered.  
"This for your friend, _Itachi-sama?_ Looks tasty...I might just help myself!"  
"Give it back!" cried Izumi, angry tears filling her eyes. They laughed.  
"Ooh, look, she's gonna cry!" Spiky pointed out.  
"Waaaahhhhh!" Cap mock-wept, before smirking. "The baby is crying!"  
Izumi growled at all of them, her tears streaming down her cheeks uncontrollably. "Stop it!" she screamed, struggling to get free.  
Iwao scoffed and then plunged his hand into the cake.  
"NO!" screamed Izumi in horror, watching as Iwao took a messy bite out of the cake, leaving chocolate stains on his ugly, fat face. He was eating Itachi's cake! "You ruined it!" she wailed, finally lashing out her foot. Iwao howled where her little foot caught between his legs in the groin, causing him to drop the cake, its chocolate mess now smashed in the schoolyard. Better there than in Iwao's hands and mouth.  
While Iwao was keeling over with bulging eyes and a throbbing vein, having released her collar, Izumi was still struggling to release herself from the two other seniors that gripped her arms. "Let me go!" she screamed, and was responded by a hard punch in the stomach, knocking the air and spit out of her. More hits caught her between the shoulders, in the ribs, and across her face. All she could feel was swelling pain.  
"Shut up, brat! It's your fault this happened!" snarled Cap, as he and Spike viciously kept striking her, while Iwao started to recover and step forward with bared teeth and a clench fist.  
...

Itachi was standing in front of Izumi's house, confused about why she was not there. She was always there to wait for him before walking to the Academy together.  
Her mother had just told him she had already left ten minutes before he stopped by, saying that Izumi would meet him class ahead of time. Then Imari wished him a happy birthday with a soft smile before he took off.  
Itachi knew it was his birthday today. His mother wished him the same thing while making his favorite breakfast, his father giving him a proud smile, and Sasuke laughing infectiously. But to Itachi, it was just a milestone, another year being alive.  
_I wonder what Izumi is up to._  
…

When they paused in their assault, Izumi was bent over, dangling by her elbows and her hair covering her battered face. Seeming to sense Iwao coming closer, Izumi head shot up with a heavy gasp and her doe-brown eyes were now replaced with the red Sharingan, spinning uncontrollably.  
"Your eyes?" Iwao's widened in shock...but then let out a laugh when seeing her body sway dizzily. He flicked her between the eyes, making her wince. "Ooh, how scary! You people think your all so powerful with your creepy eye-jutsu, but I can prove-" He grabbed a handful of Izumi's hair and yanked, causing her to whimper, "-here and now-" Her face was grabbed harshly with his chocolate-covered hand, squeezing her jaw so tightly that there would be bruises later, "-that it's a load of crap!"  
Heavy tears fell out of Izumi's Sharingan eyes, filled with fear and despair. Her body was shaking and hurting all over. Where was everybody? Why was nobody around?  
She felt so weak and helpless. She couldn't do anything as she watched in terror and half-consciousness as Iwao released her face to pull back his "stone fist."  
"Please..." Izumi whimpered, another tear running, her Sharingan quickly draining her energy.  
_Itachi-kun, help me! Please..._


	5. The Genius

**Chapter Five**

**The Genius**

  
Itachi was frozen.  
His blood turned to ice. His vision was hazed with red. His shoulder bag dropped on the ground.  
Thirty feet from him, in the middle of the school playground, were three twelve years old beating up a smaller kid. One of them was Iwao, a twisted sneer on his chocolate-covered face as he gripped the hair of the trapped child and pulled back a fist.  
Her brown hair was limp and tousled around a small face covered in red and purple splotches, a busted lip, and a marked eye that would turn black in the morning...her half-closed eyes crimson red and filled with tears...  
The beaten child was Izumi. Her battered state reflected from his wide black, dilated pupils.  
_Izumi...blood...cuts...danger…why…._  
 _IZUMI!_  
He took slow steps forward.  
They picked up speed, sprinting across the grass.  
His chakra picked up rapidly. He was charging.  
Right when Iwao's fist came down toward Izumi's face, Itachi leapt across the clearing until his foot snapped forward and connected with the Akimichi's face.  
CRUNCH! His teeth gritted when he felt a crunch beneath his heel, Iwao grunting in surprise and pain as his head was forced back. Blood and spit flew in the air, barely missing Itachi's hair strands in soaring motion.  
The Akimichi landed heavily on his back with a thud, the newly seven year-old Uchiha crouching firmly on top of his chest, foot still planted right into older boy's fat cheek, whose mouth and nose already smeared with blood.  
"What-What the hell-?" gasped one of the seniors behind him. At the sound of older kid's cracked voice, Itachi stood up and slowly turned around. The preteens still holding Izumi nearly dropped her when seeing the intense, angry dark eyes peering at them from beneath his bangs.  
It was a wonder his Sharingan hadn't activated from the overwhelming cold rage he felt, but Itachi didn't need it to look as scary as he did now.  
_"Let her go,"_ Itachi said quietly, but it was almost like a snarl.  
The guy with spiky hair and nose ring growled. "Why you-!" He charged at the prodigy first. Closing in on the child, he threw a fist, which Itachi easily dodged with a jerk of his head, caught the extended wrist, and gave it a good twist, causing Spiky Hair to hunch over and cry out in pain. Without pause, he kneed the preteen in the groin and elbow-struck him in the neck to stun him. Itachi then threw a powerful sidekick in the stomach that sent the boy sprawling backward with a choking gasp, crashing into Cap Guy behind him.  
Released from their grasp, Izumi had dropped unceremoniously to the ground, seeming to having passed out from either the pain of her injuries or the overwhelming power of her activated Sharingan.  
Seeing this, Itachi jumped off of Iwao's chest and was soon kneeling by her side, turning her over and placing hands delicately over her bruised face, careful not to hurt her. He gently brushed the hair strands from her face and cupped her cheek. "Izumi!" Itachi tried calling out to her, worry sickening him. She didn't move except for a mere wince from her shut eyes, her breathing raspy from the blood, which faintly dripped from her nose and lips. "Izumi, can you hear me?"  
"Hey, you!" Itachi tensed up when Iwao growled behind him. The Akimichi was sitting up, spitting out a glob of blood and phlegm aside, before rubbing his messy face. "What do you think you're doing? We're not done yet, Uchiha! You think I'm just gonna let you get away with that?!"  
Itachi glared back at him while Iwao stood back up, both fists clenching as he moved into a battle-stance. "That's twice you took me by surprise, you little shit! Never again! This time, you're going end up worse than your little bitch there!"  
Itachi's eyes narrowed dangerously. _What did he just call her?_  
He slowly rose, stepping protectively in front of the unconscious Izumi to block her from Iwao's view. He held out two fingers for a challenge...but this time with cold-hearted determination in his eyes.  
Iwao bared his teeth and then charged with a loud yell. Itachi darted off to the side, intentionally leading Iwao's charging form away from Izumi and to get a clear enough striking distance. "GET OVER HERE!" yelled the Akimichi, lifting both fists.  
Itachi then twisted around and leapt high just when his opponent smashed both fists into the ground, leaving a soiled hole in place. "What the..." Iwao looked up, only to have the top of his head axe-kicked down into the ground by Itachi's swinging heel.  
Using the head as a platform, the Uchiha lightly hopped away back on the ground as Iwao pushed himself up, spitting out dirt. Then his features twisted into a gruesome snarl, pupils dilating madly. "You're dead, Uchiha!" And then he charged again like a bull. When noticing Itachi ready into a stance, narrowed black eyes quickly assessing the next move, Iwao spat, "Not gonna fall for the same trick! _Expansion Jutsu!"_  
One of his extending hands grew massive in size, slamming down toward Itachi, but the smaller boy flipped into the air, landing on top of the hand. He then swiftly rolled away when another massive hand crashed down. Twisting from the landing crouch, Itachi noted the massive hands crossed together, briefly throwing the Akimichi off balance from the weight. Within less than a second, Itachi darted forward, leaping back onto the hands and was sprinting across the extended arms like a speeding bullet on a bridge. Before Iwao could react in surprise, Itachi's smaller fist made a powerful uppercut beneath the preteen's double-chin.  
The impact, as though in slow motion, threw Iwao off balance and caused him to stumble backwards from the power behind Itachi's hit. Itachi then finished the attack with a sweep of his leg, twisting the balls of his feet on Iwao's arms and ending the blow with a 360 degree round kick at the left side of the older kid's face, causing him to fall heavily three five feet away across the ground. His expanded limbs shrunk back to normal as he got another face-full of grass and soil, the left side of his face bearing a massive red and purple bruise just above the cheekbone. Itachi then landed lightly with a steady crouch on all fours, his hardened eyes still focused on the fallen Akimichi.  
Behind Itachi, the other boys were sitting up, having witnessed the fight with wide eyes and gaping mouths. "N-No way...!" Spiky-Hair stuttered, while Cap Guy trembled with clenched teeth. Both were sweating profusely. "He...He beat Iwao...like it was nothing?! What the hell is this kid?!" Cap Guy looked over at the unconscious Izumi and reached out to poke her...  
"Touch her again, and I won't hold back this time!"  
They flinched when Itachi spoke up in an icy tone, his back still facing them. It was unnerving that the little boy can sense their movements from behind, as though he had eyes had the back of his head.  
_That was him holding back?!_ they both thought, slightly in awe while recalling him taking them both down with only a mere defensive counterattack.  
When Itachi turned to glance back at them, one deadly look was enough to send them packing. This wasn't a child they were looking at...this was a weapon! They stumbled backward on their feet and ran away.  
Iwao was groaning a curse, regaining his senses, when suddenly he felt a small hand grip his collar and pull him more upright. He found himself staring up at a very angry-looking, seven year-old Uchiha, who was about to pull back a small but hardened fist...Iwao felt a hint of fear rise, not believing the strength and agility of this kid...almost as if this kid could kill him if he wanted to. There was just something about that cold, stoic, steely look that could be seen on older and very experienced shinobi...  
Itachi was about to knock him out with a punch or two, for the first time in his life feeling the slightest pleasure to do so ( _He hurt Izumi!_ ), but then his senses picked up more chakra and his ears more voices. When he looked up, he saw more students that had just arrived watching them with surprised and entranced looks. Among the crowd, he even spotted some of his classmates like Kamano, Hioshi, Shinto, Hana, and Yuki watching him with gaping expressions, not believing their eyes. That Itachi Uchiha was standing above the biggest bully in the Academy, with not a mark on him, about to beat the crap out of him for hurting Izumi...  
_Izumi!_ Itachi blinked then, remembering himself when seeing Izumi still laying immobile and beaten up in the grass next to a mess that looked something like a chocolate cake and crushed box. She needed help. He looked at all the kids, disbelief choking him. _Why_ was nobody moving to help her?  
_"Itachi-sama_ , huh?" Iwao choked out, after noticing Itachi's hesitation. His speech was slurring from his battered face and nose. "Think you're the big shot now? This is just dumb luck! Beginner's luck! It won't last! Runt like you don't have it in ya!"  
Itachi's head snapped back toward Iwao, his eyes narrowing as he leaned toward the Akimichi's beaten face, his grip tightening on the shirt. "What makes you think that I don't have it in me?" Itachi whispered. Then he added more quietly, leaning into the preteen's ear, "I bet you never even killed a person in your life."  
After feeling the older kid shudder, Itachi threw Iwao down forcefully and stepped back. The bully groaning pitifully, Itachi turned around and walked away, trying to keep the disgust off his face from everything that was happening. As much as he wanted to finish Iwao off, it wasn't worth it. He could rot in the dirt for all Itachi cared. Right now, Izumi needed help and nobody was moving to do it.  
_Too caught up in the show, no doubt,_ he thought bitterly. If Iwao Akimichi was supposed to be the strongest and most feared student in the Academy, then it was definitely some kind of joke. Like those other boys, he had charged recklessly into the fight without accessing his surroundings or Itachi's next moves, deliberately undermining the child prodigy's capabilities, leaving him utterly exposed to his opponent's attacks and ensuring his inevitable defeat.  
That had always been the same mistake with every one of Itachi's victims, back in the Third Great Ninja War.  
_A ninja should not rush recklessly into danger, expecting an easy victory, no matter how confident they are to win. Those who do are sure to die…even by an infant's hand._ It was a cruel, bitter lesson he had learned for himself many times over, based on his own personal experiences….and one that he hoped one day to erase from existence forever.  
By the time Itachi reached Izumi, Kamano was the first one to snap out of his trance and notice Izumi on the ground. "Izumi-chan!" he yelled in horror, coming forward. Like a chain reaction, her name sparked the other classmates and they immediately became concerned when finally noticing Izumi's injured form curled up in the grass.  
"Izumi-chan?" exclaimed Shinto, reaching out.  
Itachi snapped. "Somebody get help!" he said, his tone causing everyone to flinch.  
As the smaller kids were gathering around them, one of the older kids exclaimed, "Somebody get the medic!" Everyone was stumbling around.  
Trembling slightly and ignoring everyone else, Itachi had gently scooped up Izumi's limp form, sitting her up until she was cradled in his lap, her head leaning on his shoulder beneath his chin. She felt so small and fragile. Her face was covered in cuts and bruises, along with a busted lip and a swollen eye. Itachi gritted his teeth, his throat choking up and sight blurring. How could they do this? How could somebody be so cruel to Izumi, of all people? Sweet, innocent, loving Izumi...He whispered her name, cradling her head.  
Kamano placed a hand on her shoulder, concerned. "Izumi-chan?"  
Itachi's eyes flashed toward him angrily, his blood boiling. He wanted to scream at him. He wanted to scream at all of them. They didn't care! How could they care? How dare they! How could they notice now when they should have...from the moment they arrived...They were supposed to be her friends! Feeling more protective than ever, he held her more tightly to him, chest aching so much that his breath became shaky, feeling the need to cry. Why Izumi? Why her? Why did she walk to school alone, without him? If he had been there with her...or had arrived sooner...  
Then he felt her stir and moan softly.  
_"T'achi-kun...?"_ she breathed, softly.  
"Izumi!" Itachi gasped, looking down at her face, while Kamano exclaimed, "Izumi-chan!"  
"Izumi-chan," said Hana, worriedly kneeling down with them with Yuki next to her, who looked like she was about to cry. "Can you hear us?"  
"Guys?" mumbled Izumi, her eyes flickering open. They were still red with the Sharingan. "W-What...happened? Itachi-kun..." Her breath was raspy and she whimpered in pain. Itachi stroked her hair gently.  
"It's okay, Izumi," he whispered, heart breaking at seeing her in pain. "You're safe. They won't hurt you anymore. Just try not to move too much, okay?"  
Izumi's red eyes gazed into nothing, but she was listening to him. They filled with tears and her body started to shake as she cried. "I-Itach-kun...I-I couldn't do anything. I f-froze...I couldn't fight..."  
Itachi shook his head. "Izumi..."  
"I was worthless," she sobbed, and then her breathing quickened as she winced, tears pouring down her cheeks. "I-I wanted to surprise you...I made you a cake...for your birthday...now it's ruined! I'm so sorry, Itachi-kun...I'm sorry..."  
"Oh, no, Izumi, please don't," begged Itachi, softly. "Don't." He hugged her head under his chin as she cried, rocking her slightly as his own expression broke in sorrow. He looked over at the mess of a chocolate cake in the grass, finally understanding. "You made that for me?" he whispered.  
Izumi nodded in his chest, sniffling. "Mm."  
Heart warming and breaking at once, Itachi smiled a little and closed his eyes, pressing his cheek on top of her head. "Thank you," he whispered. "Thank you, Izumi. I love it."  
Izumi made a noise of surprise, another tear escaping over her cut cheek. "B-But….it's ruined..." Her voice was tiny.  
"Don't worry about it," he told her, running fingers through her long hair soothingly. "I don't mind. It's the thought that counts."  
"I wasn't sure if you liked chocolate," admitted Izumi, fuzzily. Her eyes began drifting tiredly, her breath wet from her bloody nose. Then she whimpered softly, "Hurts..."  
"I know, I know," whispered Itachi, rocking her gently. "Help is coming. J-Just...Just close your eyes and go to sleep. Please...go to sleep, Izumi. I'll be right here."  
"Hmm..." Izumi's eyes slowly closed and soon her head went slack against Itachi's chest, losing consciousness again. Her face relaxed more, no longer in pain. He continued to hold her close and stroke her hair, his jaw clenched tightly and eyes filled with heated sorrow. He never wanted to let her go again. He never wanted anyone to touch her again. He just wanted her safe, away from the bullies. Away from violence. Away from shinobi life.  
He had seen plenty of it during the war. Seen plenty of it now. Would shinobi life always be this cruel? If it was, then what was the point? Why continue doing this? Itachi was forced into this life by the clan, by his father, but why was Izumi doing this? Just... _why?_  
This question continued to haunt him even as the teachers had finally arrived, led by one of the older students, an eleven year-old boy named Iruka, who had probably already told them what had happened. They had found all the first year students surrounding Itachi Uchiha, holding a beaten-up Izumi Uchiha protectively in his arms.

                                                                                                       ∞∞∞

 _There is birth...and death..._  
Itachi was hiking the woods alone, carrying a bag full of weapons. It was a sunny day. The leaves of the trees were green, the sky was blue, and the breeze was warm. So full of life...yet Itachi kept recalling all the times when there was not so much left. The Third Great Ninja War...the Nine-tails' attack...so much death, that could happen at any time.  
Itachi looked up toward the sky, watching a flock of birds fly past and thought back on the students in his school. _Life...flocks together..._  
Itachi found himself exploring the monument sights, large boulders bearing Konahakure's swirling leaf symbols.  
_What is a shinobi?_  
 _What is a village?_  
Recalling his seventh birthday over a week ago, he remembered by the end of that awful day, after checking Izumi over in the infirmary with Itachi, Hana, and Kamano by her side, the medic found more injuries on Izumi's body, including a few cracked ribs. After patching her up and performing some healing jutsu for more internal injuries, they decided to send Izumi home and give her some time off for bed rest. Itachi volunteered to bring back her homework whenever it was needed. They had even let him come with the sensei who was carrying Izumi home.  
Izumi's mother was furious when finding her daughter in this battered state. Once Izumi was placed in her bed, Imari yelled at the sensei outside the bedroom, demanding repeatedly who was responsible so that she would pour her wrath on them for nearly killing her baby, while the sensei in his nervous state tried repeatedly to calm the red-eyed woman down and stutter reassurances that the Academy instructors were already taking care of it.  
Itachi didn't really listen in on the loud exchange happening downstairs from the bedroom, having been too busy laying next to the sleeping Izumi in her bed, holding her hand.  
The next day, he learned that Iwao Akimichi and his two comrades received a month of detention for their deadly assault on school grounds. Although truthfully, a suspension would have been more justifiable in Itachi's opinion, because he knew that Iwao would eventually find the right opportunity to strike back and gain his revenge. Itachi himself would have received the same punishment for jumping into the fight if a few witnesses (friends of Izumi) hadn't spoken up on his behalf. Since it had been evident that he had only been protecting a fellow classmate and clansmen from further harm, they decided to give Itachi only three days of detention, during breaks and one hour after school.  
Itachi didn't mind at all, because while currently being the only one left in the classroom (as he was currently the only freshmen in his class receiving detention), it gave him enough peace and quiet to read or just simply meditate. Then after detention was over and the bell for the upperclassmen rang, he would go straight to Izumi's house, bringing her homework.  
During one of his visits at her house a couple of days ago from now, Izumi was the one who reminded him of the possibility of Iwao's revenge, while she was still in bed rest and they were doing homework together.  
_"What if Iwao comes after you?" Izumi asked worriedly, while laying in her bed with Itachi sitting cross-legged next to her, a notebook in his lap. "After what happened, I'm afraid that he'll try to hurt you. He won't stop."_  
 _Itachi only looked at her, unworried. "Trust me, he won't. He would have to try catching me first."_  
 _Izumi smiled in relief. "Yeah, you're right. And you won't go after him either, right? I don't want you to get in any more trouble like he did."_  
 _"Hn." Itachi shook his head in response. Going after Iwao now would be pointless. Izumi was safe, nearing recovery, and that was all that mattered. He didn't know when she would be up to going back to the Academy once she was healed, but he did know that it wasn't the same without her there. In fact, it got very lonely, despite being surrounded by "friends." He missed her. So did everyone else, he told her. While she was gone, Hana usually sat next to him in class. She and Izumi seemed to have hit it off and had gotten closer over the past month, despite their own clans' culturally critical differences toward one another. Sometimes the Inuzuka girl would also come over to Izumi's house for a visit on separate occasions._  
 _Whenever Hana would try to start a start a conversation with him, it usually failed because Itachi didn't really socialize with anyone anymore. Although, this one time she mentioned that having a baby brother named Kiba, and then Itachi told her about his own baby brother, Sasuke. It didn't really go on much from there, but Hana continued to sit next to him in Izumi's place, while he would continue to gaze out the window, feeling empty and lost._  
 _Itachi still met with Kamano and the guys to tutor them with classwork sometimes, but his heart wasn't really into it. Everything was too easy. Too boring. And without Izumi there, it just now seems pointless to keep coming back to school._  
 _But after the incident with Izumi and Iwao on his birthday, new questions kept jabbing at him and his resolution became clear, discarding any previous doubt he ever had in what always desired to do. If his vow hadn't been truly sincere when he was toddler, it certainly did now, as he remembered Izumi's beaten state in his arms._  
I will end all fighting in this world.  
 _"Itachi-kun, what is it?" asked Izumi, watching him be lost in thought again._  
 _Itachi shook his head and gave her a tiny smile. "Nothing. I just wish you got better and came back soon, that's all."_  
I _will_ become the best shinobi there ever was. _Izumi leaned her head against him affectionately as Itachi summoned these thoughts from the bottom of his heart. His head turned slightly to look back at her from the corner of his vision with tender eyes._ Because I have people I need to protect.  
When he went home afterwards, he had shown the progress report to his parents that night in the living room. Both were proud of him.  
_"First in every class, according to your progress report," declared Fugaku, continuously impressed as he read his son's grades. Beside him, Mikoto was beaming with equal pride. "That's my boy."_  
 _"Tousan..."_  
 _"Hm?"_  
 _"Teach me a jutsu. I want to know more about being a shinobi."_  
….

"You're very talented for your age."  
Itachi paused in his training, surprised by a familiar voice. This person was really good at hiding his chakra, one of the few people capable of sneaking up on the prodigy. Something only another prodigy could do.  
Itachi turned around toward the voice. "I'm no match for you, Shisui."  
Exactly similar to when they first met, the taller, unruly appearance of Shisui Uchiha walked out from the shadows of the trees, observing Itachi's handiwork on the surrounding targets embedded with kunai knives. His present grin widened as he chuckled, eying the younger Uchiha knowingly. "Oh, come on!" he teased. "What's the matter? Does the Academy bore you so much that you're ditching now?"  
Itachi turned back to his task and held up a kunai. "I'm not ditching," he said, before throwing it toward the target.  
"You're not, huh?" Shisui crossed his arms. "Because last I checked, the Academy's at least ten miles in the other direction."  
Itachi threw another knife. "Like I said, I'm not ditching." He glanced up at Shisui.  
"..."  
"..."  
Then Shisui burst out laughing, once it finally clicked. "What? Don't tell me..." he gasped, smiling. "Already?"  
"Ah." Itachi nodded.  
"How long have you been doing this?"  
"Only a couple of days."  
"Is that how long you've figured it out?"  
Itachi shook his head. "No, it's been a while now." He threw two knives, one hitting the target, though the other landed slightly off the mark.  
Shisui stared at him. "A while, huh? Then why now?" When Itachi didn't answer, Shisui sighed. "Well, while we're here and I'm off a mission for now, I might as well stick around for some training. Your throws are a little off, so either you're distracted or you're desperate for some competition," he teased. "Seriously, is the Academy really that bad?"  
"I would much rather train with you," Itachi admitted.  
Shisui's smile softened at the younger's words. Then he tilted his head and said, "Hey, there's this cool trick I want to show you…."  
For over an hour, Shisui was training Itachi, showing him a better way on how to unsheathe his kunai knives. Itachi was especially intrigued with the way Shisui made four kunai appear like magic from the back of his hand, using the hilts between his fingers before batting them forward. They all hit the targets.  
It wasn't long before Itachi figured out how to do the same, easily unsheathing the knives between his fingers, and with a wave of his arm, they all hit the precise targets in separate areas. Shisui gave him a thumbs up.  
Suddenly, in the middle of practice, Itachi gave a jolt, inhaling sharply.  
"Itachi?" said Shisui, noticing this. "Are you okay?"  
Itachi said nothing, staring ahead in shock.  
Memories of his shadow clone started filling him in...  
_Itachi was sitting at his desk when the bell rang...and was surprised to see Izumi walk through the door with Hana. When she spotted him, her smile grew as she limped over to take a seat next to him, setting down her knapsack across the table._  
 _"Izumi?" Itachi stared at her._  
 _"Surprise!" she said, grinning. She was still paler than usual, and there were still taped cuts on her cheeks in contrast to the light-shade of black surrounding her left eye. It was good to see her out of bed, but..._  
 _"How are you feeling?" he asked, concerned. "Does it hurt to walk?"_  
 _Izumi shrugged. "A bit, but not so much that I can't. Kaasan dropped me off. Ojiisan said I should be here if I want to be a strong kunoichi. Besides, I got bored."_  
 _She tried to act positive, but Itachi frowned. He had met Izumi's great-uncle, Noriro Uchiha, who happened to be one of the clan elders. He was a strict old man over sixty years old with long gray hair pulled back into a rope-like braid, tough tan skin full of wrinkles, a stern face with a grim-set mouth (much like Itachi's own father) and clouded black eyes that still pierced like two flints. Itachi heard that the man was ruthless, hard-core, and a lawful Uchiha clan member through-and-through. He also knew that his father, Fugaku, respected the man in some ways for his advise and wisdom on leadership qualities, although it didn't mean he wasn't cautious, for Noriro was a force to be reckoned with all on his own, even during his youth. Itachi found it really hard to believe that Izumi was closely related to this man._  
 _Itachi had met the elder two times in his life: once before he was sent to the war, when Noriro selected him as one of the children skillful enough to fight. The second time while walking past him in the hallway of Izumi's house when fetching her a snack. He had bowed to the elder while passing him by, as it was custom to do so, and he knew Noriro-sama recognized him as the clan leader's son and heir._  
 _Though Itachi was polite and showed him respect as the clan heir would to an honorable elder, he found that he didn't like Noriro very much. For one, he was one of those people who only viewed Itachi as a weapon of the Uchiha and nothing more. And the other...instinct told him that Noriro disapproved of his grandniece in many ways, but Itachi let the topic go for the time being, wanting as little to do with that man as possible._  
 _"Really, I'm fine, I promise," insisted Izumi, noticing Itachi's expression and bringing him out of his thoughts. "I just need to be careful before I can spar again, so don't worry about me."_  
Izumi…. _thought Itachi, not sure that it would be possible not to worry about her in this condition._  
 _Sensei then began to teach them about field strategy, but Itachi found it hard to concentrate the whole time as he kept glancing at Izumi, who was continuously rubbing at her healing injuries uncomfortably._  
 _He hoped to get through the day without her, or anyone else, figuring out that he was just a shadow clone. He had no idea she was coming back today._  
 _It was during lunch break when Itachi was reading from a history scroll to Kamano, Hioshi, and Shinto outside of the school, tutoring them at the usual time. He was just finishing up the first chapter when he noticed Kamano perk up in surprise. "What the..." the boy started. Hioshi and Shinto jerked up, looking wary._  
 _Sensing a bunch of other chakra present, Itachi looked up and saw what startled his companions. Standing ten feet away from them was Iwao...surrounded by at least eight other older kids his age. They all had arrogant smirks on their faces. It was like Iwao had built a small army._  
So, he's ditching detention and striking now, when we're alone, _thought Itachi, measuring them all._ That's nine against four.  
 _Smirks growing, Iwao and the preteens all presented their hand-sign for a showdown._  
 _"Hey, wait, you guys!" shouted Kamano in vain. "That's not fair!"_  
 _The older kids already started charging. Soon, it became chaos._  
 _Itachi found himself easily dodging all punches and kicks thrown at him, jumping high into the air and bending in every direction with flexible ease. He found that Kamano, Hioshi, and Shinto were not so fortunate, as they were being pummeled to the ground by other bigger kids._  
 _Every movement, every punch that came was slow in Itachi's eyes, causing him to easily dance away to the side, his expression melting in wonder and curiosity at how fast and slow the action seemed around him. Too easy. This was nothing. They couldn't catch him._  
 _He was untouchable. They couldn't hurt him._  
"Itachi-kun!"  
 _While dodging another punch, Itachi's eyes widened when spotting Izumi off to the side. The girls, like Hana, Mari, and Yuki, were there. Some were cheering Itachi on with his amazing stealth, while others were frozen and silent while watching helplessly, unsure of what to do. Izumi looked horrified._  
 _She looked like she wanted to jump in to stop them, but Hana caught her arm. "No, don't! You'll only get hurt worse!" the young Inuzuka said, looking scared._  
 _Jumping and twirling away from blows of the older kids, Itachi kept finding Izumi's wide, terrified brown eyes in the midst of the action. Time slowed when their gazes caught. The attempted blows kept coming at the side of his vision, but Itachi was only intrigued by the way her hair strands drifted across her flushed face. He could almost hear her terrified breaths. He could feel her chakra buzzing. He could see her unshed tears shining in her eyes, as though reflecting the light of her soul, pure and wondrous. Like her heart, her quiet whimpering..._  
 _As Itachi danced away from another blow, catching these glimpses of her in the action like dancing leaves in the wind, a strange feeling started to swell in his chest. Something he had never felt before. It made his heart pick up, the pores of his skin beginning to sweat and tingle, his palms becoming clammy...it was a bittersweet feeling. It was a selfish feeling. A need, a desire, a hint of ego...something prideful and completely new._  
 _Itachi felt the need to impress Izumi._  
What are you thinking, Izumi? What is this feeling you give me? With you nearby, watching me fight...I feel...  
 _While jumping away from more fists by three kids, Itachi's view was blocked by the larger form of Iwao Akimichi, who was laughing cruelly. He had the Uchiha kid right where he wanted him. Surrounded and nowhere to run._  
...afraid.  
 _Itachi's eyes narrowed in concentration. His black eyes blazed fiercely now._  
 _Iwao growled. "What's with the look?" he shouted, throwing a punch, which Itachi easily dodged by bending backwards, feeling the empty air sweep his bangs._  
 _"Please, stop!" he heard Izumi scream._  
 _Itachi wondered, though, what it was like to be caught. To feel the pain of a punch, a kick, a tackle. He realized, in his wonder, that he did not know what it felt like to get physically hurt by another. Izumi suffered injuries from Iwao. The bastard had hurt Izumi...to get to Itachi._  
You still hurt now, Izumi. It should have been me, not you. _He dodged another punch, finding Izumi's terrified eyes again._ I want...to know your pain.  
 _"Hey, cut it out! That's enough!" the sound of the teachers' yelling were heard, as they started running over towards the fight._  
 _Itachi then made his decision. Pausing his ground, he let one of the older kids catch him from behind, hooking under his arms and around his shoulders to completely trap him. Another kid dove and caught his torso. Out of instinct, Itachi struggled, but found with all the weight on him, he couldn't move. His heart pounded with adrenaline. He was vulnerable. Trapped. It felt so strange, and slightly suicidal._  
 _"We got him!" shouted the boy holding his torso._  
 _"Keep a hold on him!" yelled the one hooking his arms._  
 _"HAH!" Iwao came charging towards him, pulling back a powerful fist. "Gotcha now!"_  
 _Here he comes. His breathing quickened and his body automatically braced itself._  
 _"Itachi!" yelled Kamano from the ground, his face busted._  
 _"Itachi-kun!" screamed Izumi._  
 _BOOM!_  
 _Pain. He received a giant fist-full of exploding, white-hot pain at the side of his face, blinding all his senses, rattling every bone in his body. Enough to feel his entire skull crack and his teeth rattle, spit flying out of the corner his mouth. Somewhere, he could hear screaming. Izumi's screaming. Iwao had punched him directly in the cheek, the knuckles hard and bone-crushing, the force putting a large dent in his jaw._  
 _The last thing he remembered was falling backwards in midair, his face still numb with agony from the punch..._  
 _Then the world disappeared in a poof._  
Still shocked by what just transpired, Itachi placed a hand at the side of his face, where there should have been a major collateral injury from an extremely powerful punch.  
"Ouch," he whispered. That _really_ hurt.  
….

Meanwhile, back at the Academy, everyone was frozen in shock. Kamano, Hioshi, Shinto, the bullies, the teachers, the girls, and even Izumi were gaping speechlessly at where Itachi had been.  
There was complete silence.  
He disappeared. Itachi Uchiha had _disappeared in a puff of smoke._  
"W-What...What happened?" Iwao was the first to stutter out, looking around in wide-eyed disbelief. "He...He's gone?!"  
"He disappeared!" one of the bullies said in a high-pitched voice. They were all looking around wildly, panic filling the air. "He disappeared! He _disappeared!"_  
" _Where the hell did he go?!"_ screeched Iwao, punching the air in complete panic and frustration.  
Izumi was still staring, her jaw dropped and teary eyes wide, fixed on the spot where she had watched Itachi take a bone-crushing punch to the face at one moment...and had literally disappeared in thin air the next.  
"Itachi...kun?" she breathed, still not believing what she just saw.  
Sensei and the other teachers were still standing there in complete shock and amazement. "That...That was a clone," said Sensei, feeling sweat drip down his neck. "No…" He let out a breath.  
"That was a _Shadow Clone Jutsu."_  
...

 _Izumi was at school?_ Turning around, Itachi packed up his things, and started walking away. Memories of her watching him dodge the many incoming blows imprinted in his mind. _She saw me..._  
"Hey, where are you going?" Shisui asked, who was preparing another kunai.  
"I have to get back," replied Itachi.  
"You do?" Shisui threw the kunai at the target. That seemed pretty sudden. His best bet was that Itachi's shadow clone got caught somehow.  
"Sorry." Itachi paused, then turned around. "Shisui..."  
"Hm?"  
"...Why is there fighting in life?" asked Itachi. His mind wandered briefly back to Iwao and the army of bullies, all of whom did not hesitate to start an unfair fight on little kids for their own twisted pleasure.  
Shisui sighed tiredly. "Who knows? But…" His eyes hardened with sincerity. "...if the fighting can be stopped, I'd take that chance and stop it if I could."  
Itachi blinked, suddenly feeling hopeful. "Me too!" he agreed, determination lacing his tone. After what he had just witnessed through his shadow clone, he would like nothing better than to see a world where peace existed. And he was glad that Shisui shared his thoughts on the subject. Itachi then took off running, leaving Shisui to stare after him with an unreadable expression.  
This was the dream that Itachi had been longing for his whole life.  
_A life where there is peace._

                                                                                                     ∞∞∞

"Aside from the shadow clone jutsu, which is a requirement for graduating the Academy, Itachi Uchiha has already mastered the Shadow Clone Jutsu, a forbidden jutsu. He excels in all other subjects. There's no purpose in keeping him at the Academy any longer."  
Meeting that afternoon with the council in the Hokage Tower, Hiruzen Sarutobi was amazed at what the class sensei had just reported. "Isn't he just a freshmen?"  
"That seems to be the case." Danzo spoke up, grimly, though his one revealing eye glinted with interest as he glanced toward the other elders and the Hokage. "But that hardly matters. This has happened before."  
Hiruzen closed his eyes, tiredly. "That was a different era. This is no longer the age of war."  
Danzo turned back to the sensei. "The boy is a genius, no?"  
"I've _never_ seen a student like him," confirmed Sensei. "There's not a subject given in the class that he cannot do. It's incredible."  
Hiruzen was silent. A genius, at the age of seven. There was another the Third Hokage knew who had such rare intellect. Itachi Uchiha was always known to be a special case, but this was unexpected. Simply incredible.  
But this was a new age. Underage graduations were being abolished, and the child was still so young….  
"It would be foolish to delay the inevitable when the answer is staring us right in the face, Hiruzen," Danzo spoke, glaring sideways at Sarutobi as though he read his mind. Something glittered in his narrowed eye as he continued. "The village is in need of more capable ninja and the Academy would only be a tasteless charade to someone as promising as Itachi Uchiha. You know what must be done."  
The Third Hokage bowed his head, his cap overshadowing his eyes. Somehow, he couldn't find a reason to argue, since he too shared similar thoughts. "So then it's decided: it would be better for Itachi to graduate."


	6. Graduation

**Chapter Six**

**Graduation**

Itachi was running as fast he could. He leapt through trees to speed up his race through ten miles of Hidden Leaf population. Anybody who would have seen him pass by would have mistaken him for a breeze in the wind if they blinked. By the time he was nearing the Uchiha compound (he knew it was no use in going back to school, since it was long over by now), the sky was getting slightly darker with an approaching sunset.  
While speeding through the forest, his mind was racing.  
Everyone saw him. They all saw what he did, even the teachers. Even Izumi. Itachi didn't know why he felt anxiety start to build up. He shouldn't care. It shouldn't matter to him. At least, he thought it didn't...until it actually happened. Itachi felt foolish now.  
Nobody was going to ignore this. How many people learned the Shadow Clone Jutsu at his age? Or Fire Style? Or Water Style? He could go on. They may be learning the hand signs of each jutsu in class, but that didn't mean they were actually performing them. They didn't have the chakra build for that yet. At best, the young first-years were learning shuriken jutsu for target practice or some taijutsu skills for sparring during physical education. Ninjutsu, genjutsu, or clone jutsu didn't come until the later years, and even then, Itachi heard that some of the older kids had trouble performing them before graduating, whereas his own were practically flawless after his first few tries with his father or Shisui.  
The secret was out. There was no better way of putting it, only Itachi didn't know why he kept his skills a secret from the others until now. They haven't seen everything he could do, but just by witnessing his Shadow Clone alone, combined with the fact that all his grades in classes were top score, it was enough to say that his knowledge surpassed all the teaching levels of the Ninja Academy. Possibly even a few of the Jounin teachers.  
The entrance of the Uchiha compound came within view. Itachi just leapt over the gates from the tree branches, before leaping across nearby rooftops.  
Somehow, Itachi had a feeling that he was going to be confronted by the grown-ups about this tomorrow. But that was not all. What would his classmates think? What would Izumi...?  
Speaking of whom, when approaching his mansion, Itachi spotted her.  
Izumi was sitting on the bottom on the edge of the veranda near the front door, looking tired and solemn. A porcelain cup of milk nestled in her two hands, resting on her lap, while her eyes blankly stared down at the liquid. Her long brown hair was now tied back with a red ribbon, her hair strands caressing her face as the breeze kissed her taped cheeks with their touch. Sighing, her hand brushed the strands from her face and tucked them behind her ears, before leaning heavily against the stair railing, as if in exhaustion.  
At this time of day, Izumi was always seemed to glow, no matter what her mood or her condition. Her brunette hair was slightly a more cedar shade, her fair skin more golden from the sunset, her dark brown eyes lighter until like milk chocolate with a hint of red...  
Itachi had been staring down at her from the neighbor's rooftop for five whole minutes before he remembered where he was and what he was doing. He gulped. There was only one reason why she was here, and based on her sad expression, he could only guess that his earlier stunt had upset her.  
Itachi leapt down from the rooftop and landed soundlessly on the compound's road. Taking a deep breath to calm down is nerves, he slowly approached her.  
Seeing his shadow, Izumi glanced up with a gasp. "Itachi-kun!" Itachi stood before her, his expression blank. They stared at each other silently. Then Izumi looked back down at her cup of milk.  
"Where have you been?" Izumi finally asked. Her bell-sweet tone was quiet, surprisingly calm. Her own expression blank.  
Somehow, her behavior unnerved Itachi. He didn't answer.  
"I was worried about you," she whispered. "Everybody was. Y-You...You just disappeared. I watched you..." Her eyes filled with tears. "...I watched you get surrounded by those kids...and you let Iwao hit you...I know you did!" Her head snapped up, her blank expression breaking. "I watched him smash your face! It was so scary, I was so scared for you...and then you disappeared! You disappeared, like it never happened! Itachi-kun, what was that? What did you do?"  
Izumi stood up, putting down her tea cup, while Itachi stood there, frozen. "That was a Shadow Clone Jutsu, wasn't it?" she whispered.  
"..." Itachi then nodded.  
"How long have you known how to do it?"  
Itachi hesitated, his eyes turned toward the ground. "Two months," he whispered. "Otousan showed it to me. I learned after the first try."  
Izumi's eyes widened. Her bottom lip trembled. "That long?" she squeaked. "That was practically when you started school."  
Itachi swallowed, not bearing to look at her. "Everything is too easy," he admitted. "I-I just...I can't help it, Izumi. I'm not...I'm not like everyone else. I thought you knew that. Is it so wrong to learn a new jutsu and keep going?"  
Izumi shook her head. "It's not that...I don't care about that," she protested, rubbing her teary eyes. "I always knew you were talented, Itachi-kun! Everyone knows, and there's probably still a lot more I want to know about you. What I mean is...Itachi-kun...have you been using a Shadow Clone this whole time? With me?" Itachi's eyes widened when the words sunk in, but she continued mercilessly, "Was the Academy really so boring that the real you was just ditching the whole time, so you can go train by yourself like you always do? Did you do it to distract me, too, Itachi?" She took the -kun suffix out of his name as she yelled at him, a hot tear now running down her cheek.  
"No!" shouted Itachi, causing her to jump in shock at his outburst. He shook his head and stepped toward her, though Izumi had her arms hugging her chest and her teary face pouting at the ground. "No, I was only doing this the past two days, I swear," he said, desperately trying to make her understand. "Izumi, please..."  
"But it makes sense," whimpered Izumi, still glaring at the ground with tears glistening from her cheeks. "You never enjoyed going to the Academy! I'm not stupid, you know. The only reason anybody wants to go is to learn everything about being a ninja. To learn new stuff...but how can you want to go when you already know everything? I guess when I think about it that way...I don't blame you for trying to avoid me for forcing you to do something you don't want to do. For being such a nuisance to you..."  
_"Izumi!"_ The little girl gasped and looked up to see Itachi glaring at her with a mixture of fury and sadness. "Stop talking like that! It's stupid and annoying!"  
"Hey! Don't call me that!" screamed Izumi, stomping her foot in anger. "That's mean!"  
"Then stop acting like that and listen to me!" snapped Itachi at her childish behavior. He met her teary glare, feeling his own throat choke up. "I never used a Shadow Clone to go to the Academy until very recently, and that's only because it's not the same without you!"  
Izumi's eyes widened. "W-What?"  
Itachi's expression was pained. "You're right, I...I do think the Academy is boring. There was nothing left they could teach that I could learn for myself, even in the upper classes, but...I wanted to keep going because you were there with me. I..." His cheeks blushed a bright red, while Izumi continued staring at him in surprise and wonder. Itachi gulped, his heart beating rapidly. "Y-You...are one of my best friends, Izumi," he mumbled. "You make me feel...like I can be normal. L-Like everything is going to be okay...and I can't stand to see you get hurt. I really _can't_....because then I hurt, too. So much, right here." He patted his chest where his heart was. Izumi covered her mouth with both hands, her body trembling. "It hurts right now, too. And today, I learned what it was like to feel real pain from someone else's hand, like you did. It's a different kind of pain, but I can handle it, since it's already gone. Not like...this. I don't want you to get hurt ever again, and I knew you were safer at home, but...but I don't want to go to the Academy without you," said Itachi softly, feeling embarrassed and sincere. "That's why I used the Shadow Clone. I didn't know when you were coming back, so..."  
He was cut off by Izumi coming up to him and embracing him. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders, her cheek pressing against his neck as she hugged him tightly. Her tears dripped down his high-collar, her warm breath tickling his neck. That had probably been one of the best speeches Itachi had ever given and it touched her deeply. "Itachi-kun," she sobbed. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I said those awful things about you. I believe you and I'm sorry!"  
Itachi let out a sigh and let his own arms wrap around her, pulling her close and resting his chin on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, too," he whispered. His hand smoothed over her ponytail. "I'm sorry I scared you."  
Izumi giggled between her tears. "Yeah, you better be. I told you before that I don't want you to get hurt either, Itachi-kun. Even if it's a Shadow Clone."  
"But that doesn't count, right?"  
"Hn," grunted Izumi, imitating the typical Uchiha male. She pulled away from her hug to look at Itachi in the eye with a stern look of her own. "It does to me. You do that again, I don't care how good you are. I will get back at you for that, got it?"  
Itachi chuckled. "Hai." He reached out and wiped a stray tear from her cheek near her mole, causing her to blush cutely. "So, we're okay?" he asked, studying her hopefully. Her cheek felt warm and soft under his hand….He quickly let it drop.  
Izumi nodded, smiling brightly. "Mm-hm. We're okay." Then she started to walk away, her hands pulled casually behind her back, and paused in her step. "But..." she echoed, turning to face him. She looked uneasy. "I, uh, heh heh..." She chuckled nervously. "I don't know about your okaasan..."  
"My okaasan?" echoed Itachi, eyes widening.  
"That's right, Itachi, I know you're out there!" the mentioned Uchiha matriarch shouted from inside, her stern tone causing Itachi to freeze. His mother seemed to have been eavesdropping on them from inside the house and he didn't even pay attention to her nearby chakra until now. Mikoto now appeared at the doorway, carrying a basket of laundry with a cold expression that gave Itachi shivers. "When you and Izumi are done, you will get your butt inside the house, so that you and I are going are going to have a nice, long talk about _your day at the Academy_...or should I say your _absence_ from the Academy. Your father will be hearing about this as well when he gets home."  
Mikoto then turned to Izumi, smiling sweetly. "And Izumi dear, it's so good having you stop by for my son. Be sure to say hello to your mother for me and have her come by for tea sometime."  
Izumi sweated, but forced a smile back. "H-Hai, Mikoto-sama, I will!" she replied, bowing her head. When Mikoto disappeared back into the house, Izumi turned and 'eeped' when seeing Itachi scowling at her accusingly.  
He looked scary when he looked at her like that. And cute. It was so unfair.  
"S-sorry," Izumi squeaked, waving her hands before her. "I-I was just upset and I came over here, and then I asked your mom where you were, a-and then she started asking me and, well...I kind of ended up telling her everything? I'm sorry, I was confused and I couldn't handle the pressure!" she wailed loudly, gripping her bangs anxiously. Then she glared at him. "A-And it's kind of your fault, too, you know! You _did_ ditch! And they would have found out about it anyway, since the whole Academy now probably knows what you did, too!" Now she was stumbling over excuses.  
Itachi just sighed heavily, resisting the urge to palm-smack his face. And to laugh aloud.  
Because of her, he was going to be facing a long dinner of lectures and questioning from his parents, which really was infuriating. Yet the panicked expression on her pouty face just amused him to no end. He couldn't deny that she looked cute when she got all worked up over the smallest things.  
She just makes him feel so many things at once that Itachi wasn't sure that he can keep up with her changing moods like he can with training. And after today with his shadow clone, surrounded by those bullies, and with her being there to witness his prowess, looking so _unworldly_ in his eyes while time slowed down...  
It frightened him.  
_She_ frightened him, in the strangest of ways.  
And he still couldn't figure out why. It was only Izumi, after all, and all he wants to do is protect her. Like he wanted to protect Sasuke. She was one of his precious people.  
It was that simple.  
Izumi noticed him staring at her strangely. "What?" she demanded.  
"Nothing."  
"Okay, be that way." Izumi dropped her hands, sighed heavily and looked toward the setting sun over the houses. "I better go home now," she groaned tiredly. "Okaasan will be worried and hopefully Ojiisan won't be mad at me."  
"I'll come with you," Itachi quickly said. He didn't want her to walk alone again, not after last time. Though healing progressively, her injuries were still visible, and even though they were in the Uchiha compound, there could be people worse than Iwao and his friends that would want to hurt her. Especially since she was only half-Uchiha….  
"Oh….are you sure that's okay?" asked Izumi. "I mean, you're already home and my house is far away…." Izumi's house was nearer to the compound's entrance, while Itachi's was further back, having them live a few blocks apart.  
Itachi shook his head. "I want to," he insisted. He held out a hand. "Please, Izumi?"  
Izumi stared at his hand, then smiled before taking it. Her white hand was small and delicate in his own. "Thanks, Itachi-kun," she said softly.  
Itachi squeezed her hand in return and gave her a small smile. "Hn."  
"Wait, what about your mom?"  
"…." Itachi turned toward the house, knowing his mother was listening, like the former-kunoichi and curious mother she was. "Kaasan, I'm going to walk Izumi home," he called to her. It wasn't a question.  
There was a pause. "Alright, Itachi," his mother finally answered, her mood sounding lighter for some reason. "Make sure you're back in no more than an hour before dinner, or I'll come find you myself."  
"Hai," confirmed Itachi, sensing the sincere threat behind his mother's tone and inwardly groaned, eyeballing a guilty-looking Izumi in annoyance, who giggled in response. He could not believe she told his mother. _Shisui would never had done that,_ he thought, as he gripped her hand and pulled her with him down the road. _Or I don't think so….maybe…._  
Neither of the two children walking down the road together noticed Mikoto leaning against the doorway, watching them leave with a big smile on her face. The sight of them holding hands was adorable! She had even seen them hugging each other, after Itachi made the most emotional speech she had ever heard from her son, and had to cover her mouth to keep her happiness from bursting out in the open.  
Although always hoping in her heart, she had honestly never thought she would see her eldest son like this, never thought this would happen to him, especially this early in age, due to being antisocial and completely reserved after the war, plus his only interests being training, wandering, and playing with Sasuke.  
Mikoto saw the tenderness melting Itachi's stoic face every time he looked at Izumi. The look of peace and happiness, like how he would look when seeing his baby brother, but the difference was that his cheeks were completely flushed time after time with that little girl. Her son may not know it yet; for however smart he was, he was still seven years old, perhaps too young and inexperienced to figure it out at this age, like most other children….but her baby boy was falling in love.                                                                                                             

* * *

 

"So, how'd it go?" asked Izumi, as she and Itachi walked inside the Academy the next morning.  
"Hn," grunted Itachi, not looking at her.  
Izumi grimaced. "Oh, that bad? Sorry...again."  
After walking Izumi to her house and bidding her good night, his father had already arrived home from the Leaf Police Department and had been waiting with his wife when Itachi finally arrived back in time for dinner. They had first gathered in the tea room, where he kneeled before his parents whenever having a "family meeting" with them. Needless to say that he received a fiercer scolding from his mother than his father, who merely held his usual strict composure and only told Itachi that no son of his, or any Uchiha child, should take it upon themselves to abandon their required attendance for school without a parent or guardian's consent.

 _"You are better than this, Itachi," his father warned him, while his mother nodded in agreement with a frown on her expression. "No matter how exceptional your skills are, surpassing that of the Academy's given assignments, you are there to receive your degree as a true shinobi in the eyes of the Leaf. It would be the same reason if you had attended the Uchiha's classes, instead. While I have been amazed with your success in creating a Shadow Clone, it does not give you the right to misuse this jutsu for something as impractical and childish as choosing to neglect your time participating in the Ninja Academy, merely because you were bored. I have allowed you to attend the Academy out of consideration that the heir of the Uchiha learn more about the people outside of our clan, who barely consented with this decision." Fugaku's eyes narrowed. "Do I make myself clear, Itachi? If I find that this happens again, you will have to be punished."_  
 _"I understand, Otousan," replied Itachi quietly, keeping his eyes down. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again."_  
 _"Now, will you tell us what your young friend told your mother about a fight at the Academy, regarding your Shadow Clone?"_  
 _Mikoto was silent, but her eyes encouraged him on._  
 _"They were the same bullies that attacked Izumi, and more," answered Itachi. "One of them, the boy called Iwao Akimichi, managed to get a hit on me, the force of impact causing my clone to dissolve. I was only dodging. I didn't fight back."_  
 _"Did you want to fight them?" Fugaku asked out of curiosity._  
 _"No, Tousan."_  
 _"And why is that?"_  
 _"Fugaku!" whispered Mikoto, glancing at her husband in disbelief. Was he actually encouraging their son to level up with the bullies?_  
Because I had no desire to fight, or encourage it.  
 _"I didn't know what was the right choice at the time," answered Itachi instead. "Akimichi and his friends disgraced themselves by attacking us like they did Izumi, for being an Uchiha. I'm not like them and never will be." Although Itachi felt a little bad for not defending Kamano, Shinto, and Hioshi from receiving their beatings. He hoped their injuries weren't too serious. Izumi's beatings had been worse, because she had been restrained and completely defenseless. While he would not fight them on his own accord, Itachi would never forgive them for assaulting Izumi. He may have promised Izumi that he would not seek retribution on her behalf, but that didn't mean that there wouldn't be broken bones the next time Iwao or any bully so much as touched her again._  
 _"I see," said Fugaku, closing his eyes, his arms crossed in contemplation. "In any case, you are not harmed, nor will you allow yourself to be again."_  
 _"Hai."_

After that, the family had a quiet dinner, added with Sasuke's constant babbling. Itachi smiled at the memory of Sasuke tossing around his mashed carrots Mikoto had tried to feed him, until Itachi himself offered to feed Sasuke in her place. And he did it without receiving a single goop of carrot on his face or hair, for the baby raven always consented to his big brother with a wide, teething smile.  
Sasuke will be turning a year old in a few weeks, and Itachi was hoping for Izumi and Shisui's help in putting together a memorable first birthday for his baby brother. Perhaps Izumi could make him a cake, while Shisui could get balloons...  
"What are you thinking about, Itachi-kun?" asked Izumi, as they entered the classroom.  
Itachi gave her small smile. "Sasuke's first birthday is coming up in July. I don't know a lot about celebrating birthdays, so I was wondering if you could help me plan for it. I want him to be happy."  
Izumi gasped and was about to agree in excitement when they were interrupted, "Itachi!"  
They were instantly surrounded by all the students in the classroom, but the one who stood out was an angry-looking Kamano with a swollen left cheek and black eye, accompanied by Shinto, who was also glaring with bruises, cuts, and a swollen cheek. Hioshi was absent.  
"What happened to _you?_ " demanded Kamano loudly. "And, of _course_ , you look just fine!"  
Izumi stepped between them, concerned. "Kamano, don't get mad-"  
"Why not?" spat Kamano, trying to get past her to Itachi, who stood where he was, expressionless. He was glaring at the Uchiha. "Look at us, and look at him! Hioshi got a broken arm and is in the hospital, while Itachi- _sama_ here doesn't have so much as a bruise, even after getting punched by _Iwao!_ You didn't even fight back, Uchiha, and definitely not for us! We were supposed to be a team! I don't know how you suddenly disappeared like that, but you're a coward!"  
"Kamano, stop it!" shouted Izumi, trying to push him away while he struggled to move around her with a clenched fist. "Don't fight him! Please!"  
"Izumi..." A hand touched her shoulder, and Izumi turned to see Itachi step forward, gently moving her aside while facing Kamano with eyes tainted with guilt. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, bowing his head. "I just thought that you could handle yourselves, and I didn't want to make things worse by fighting..."  
"Or you just didn't care what happened to us!" snapped Kamano, causing Itachi to flinch. Everyone was watching with strong tension, a mixture between coldness and worry among the children toward the exchange. "Admit it, Uchiha! You just wanted to show off and make us look bad, like you always do! You're the one who always comes out without a scratch, because you only fight for yourself! You really are stuck-up!"  
"Kamano!' shouted Izumi angrily, when seeing Itachi further hide his face behind his bangs in shame. Even some of the girls were yelling at Kamano, though he ignored them.  
Right now, Itachi truly wished he used another clone and skipped school again. He would sooner receive a punishment from his parents than face this type of wrath. _Because it was true_ , he thought miserably. _All of it. I feel like a failure. I want there to be peace, I want to stop the fighting...and yet I caused more harm to others because I did nothing._  
_Why is there fighting in life?_  
"Itachi Uchiha." All the students quieted when seeing their sensei enter the classroom, calling out Itachi's name. Sensei spotted the young raven and said, "Itachi, will you step out into the hallway with me? Everyone else, return to your seats!"  
While the kids were departing, Kamano gave Itachi one last glare before also walking away. Breathing rapidly, Izumi looked between them, before nearing Itachi and taking his hands in hers. "Itachi-kun, don't listen to him!" she told him desperately. Her eyes teared up when seeing him looking so depressed. She tried to meet his hidden eyes. "You're not like that! You're not stuck-up! You're not any of those things!" She placed a comforting hand on his cheek, like her mother used to do to her late-father whenever he was upset after a mission. "Okay?"  
Itachi met her eyes with his own tired, hollow ones. He didn't say anything, but was fully aware of Izumi's warm touch and pleading eyes.  
"Izumi, please return to your seat," said Sensei, placing a hand on Itachi's shoulder to guide him toward the door. "Itachi will come with me."  
"Is he in trouble, Sensei?" cried Izumi fearfully, stumbling along with Itachi as he was being guided toward the door.  
"We're just going to talk. It's nothing for you to be concerned about. Go on now."  
Izumi felt Itachi squeeze her hand, before slipping his away. "It's okay..." he whispered to her. "I'll see you soon." He let Sensei lead him out the door with a hand on his back.  
"Now, Itachi," said the teacher, as they stepped into the hall, the door starting to close, "there is something very important I need to talk to you about, regarding your future..."  
Itachi just turned at the last moment to look back at Izumi.  
As the door started closing, Izumi stared after him with clear worry for him through the crack. She was gone from his sight when the door clicked shut, echoing through the hallway like the sealing of someone's fate.

* * *

 

 _"Graduate?"_ exclaimed Fugaku, the surprise very evident on his face, while Mikoto helped him out of his police vest. "After only a year at the Academy?"  
"Ah," nodded Mikoto with a proud smile, before leaving the room.  
Itachi sat at the dinner table with Sasuke crawling nearby, nodding after his mother explained to his father what their eldest son had told her earlier when he got home. "The teacher said as long as both parents agree," he explained. "They want to talk to you at school..." He hesitated, not liking what he had to say next, but must nonetheless. "...and to move me up with the senior class who will be graduating at the end of the year. He said it would be good for preparing me to become a genin, once I take the graduation exams. It was a direct request from the Hokage."  
"I see..." Fugaku sat down at the table, smiling with open pride and amazement. "That's my boy!"  
Itachi couldn't bring himself to share his parents' enthusiasm, though. He was definitely surprised at what Sensi had told him in the hallway this morning, and a part of him was actually very relieved that he will be leaving the Ninja Academy to become a genin much sooner than he thought. He was one step closer to becoming a great ninja, to erase all the fighting in the world...but then there was Izumi. It had everything to do with her.  
Summer break was coming up on the July 1st, which will end in the middle of August, so that the Ninja Academy would reorganize its yearly class semester schedules that had been out of place since the Kyubbi attack. When the next semester of school would begin by then, Itachi will have to be moved into another classroom with the older students.  
He will never get to sit next to Izumi in class again. She won't be there to smile at him in support, talk to him, or study with him. They won't even end their classes at the same time. The first years leave an hour earlier than the seniors, who all had busier schedules, so it's very likely Itachi won't get to walk home with her anymore, unless she waited for him outside. At best, they could still walk to school together, or meet up at lunch, if she wasn't occupied with her friends…Itachi still couldn't shake off the sadness.  
He still had to tell her. When he returned to the classroom with Sensei, Izumi had asked him while filled with concern, but Itachi dismissed it as a lecture and warning to not ditch school again. It was a lie. Now he could only feel a pool of dread at the thought of finding the time to tell her, before she would find out for herself.  
Itachi felt a tugging on his sleeve, breaking away his thoughts, and looked down to see Sasuke looking up at him with a wide smile on his little, blushing face, giggling in delight. He looked so tiny and precious that Itachi's stoic expression melted into a soft smile for his baby brother.  
_That's right. I'm doing this for other reasons._ Sasuke was looking up at his older brother with such adoration, almost like pride, that Itachi pulled the baby in his lap. Wrapping an arm around his tiny body, he patted the soft set of spiky hair. _Sasuke, my sweet oututo, I'm doing this for you. I'll keep doing this for you. I know I'm not perfect, not like everyone else believes, but I want to be the big brother you can be proud of. Thank you for believing in me._ He kissed the top of Sasuke head, while rocking him.  
At least he and Izumi still had the summer. And Sasuke's birthday to plan. Itachi's smile grew.

* * *

 

July came quickly, along with a two month break time for all the students, but it would be shorter this year, since the Nine-tails attack and the rebuilding of the school messed up their schedules. Itachi was actually relieved because while he could handle pressure very well, he didn't think he could take much more of Kamano's glares and obvious grudge without feeling even more guilty and irritated at the same time.  
The boys didn't confront Itachi again, mostly due to facing Izumi's wrath the day when Itachi was told he was graduating early.  
When he had returned from the talk with his teacher, the first thing he had noticed among the kids in class was Izumi's very upset expression behind folded hands propped on elbows, her back facing Kamano and Shinto's pale, frightened expressions, also quiet. Everyone else seemed a little shaken up, like they had just witnessed something utterly disturbing. He later learned from Hana that those two boys received a fierce scolding from Izumi that clearly terrified them. She had seemed so distressed (probably more than she should have), that the students had almost been certain she would activate her Sharingan. Knowing their fondness of Izumi, Kamano and Shinto didn't want her to end up hating them, so they didn't bother Itachi again, nor did Izumi try to push Itachi to hang out with them again, but he could tell she was sad about how things fell apart because of the boys' stubbornness.  
Still, Itachi wondered if he had ever truly seen Izumi's bad side yet. Since it was evident that her anger frightened the rest of the children, he wondered if he even wanted to, just to see if it would affect him just as much or not.  
Izumi was almost never angry. _Almost_. He had definitely seen her cry, have a few short tantrums, or give him stern or outraged looks that made her look more cute than intimidating, but she never truly got dangerously angry at him. He was curious...but not so curious as to tempt her.  
He knew Izumi had just been trying to help, but Itachi just couldn't find a spark of connection with the other students. He honestly didn't mind just having Izumi as his only friend in the Academy, because honestly, it has become clear to him that all the other students in the school saw him more as a trophy hero, a rival, a freak, or a fangirl's fantasy, but not as a real friend.  
During the summer, they spent most of their free time running toward the lake to train (a starry-eyed Izumi was definitely impressed with Itachi's Fireball Jutsu and Water Bomb Jutsu, begging him endlessly to teach them to her), climbing trees, and hanging out at each other's houses. It was truly amusing watching Izumi struggling to play with or to feed a stubborn baby Sasuke, especially with her determination to win his baby brother's love. Sometimes Shisui was there with them whenever he was home from missions, making their carefree days all the more fun as a trio. Whenever he was off-duty, Shisui _did_ sometimes act like he was the same age as Itachi and Izumi (or maybe just Izumi).  
But while spending all these times together, Itachi still couldn't bring himself to tell her about his early graduation. He told Shisui practically right away on a Saturday while training together. His friend praised him, of course, not surprised in the least that this had happened, but Itachi asked the elder boy to keep it quiet for now. He had also begged his mother and father not to tell the clan of his promotion, at least until summer break had ended. Though not quite understanding his reasons, they had complied to his wishes, much to his relief.  
When Sasuke's first birthday finally came, Itachi decided that he would tell Izumi that evening.  
….

The picnic for Sasuke's birthday they prepared was small. With the said-birthday boy, Itachi, Shisui, Izumi and Mikoto (Fugaku was absent, having loads of work at the police department) were gathered in the backyard garden of the Uchiha mansion, surrounded by cherry blossom trees, asagao flowers, forests of bamboo, and a crystal pond dancing with colorful Koi swimming beneath the rippling surface under the bridge.  
Seated on the blue picnic blanket toped with plates full of T-rex onigiri and inarizushi with soy sauce bowls, asparagus, strawberries, oranges, and evidence of tomato slices, the two older boys were dressed in dark yukatas with Uchiha emblems on the back. Even Sasuke had his own yukata, but it was a pale blue patterned with white clouds, wrapped around his tiny body like a doll.  
Sasuke's high-pitched squeal of laugher rang out as Itachi had him snuggled in his lap. The seven year-old prodigy smiled at the sound of his baby brother's contagious giggles wriggling against his stomach, which were continuously brought to the surface by a boisterous Shisui, who had his grip on two stuffed animals (Itachi's weasel versus Sasuke's dinosaur), dancing them around while making funny faces and comical noises as they "fought" using "ultimate taijutsu." As the stuffed-animal duel maintained, Sasuke continued pointing, giggling, and clapping in delight, a reaction which brought out bubbles of laughter from Shisui in the midst of his act. His heart light with joy, Itachi would forever have this imprinted in his mind, for these two before his eyes were his brothers in blood and soul.  
Eventually Izumi and Mikoto brought over a small white cake topped with strawberries and colored dango, all homemade. There was a single red candle lit in the center.  
"Whoa, is that for me?" gasped Shisui, placing a hand over his heart dramatically. "You ladies shouldn't have!" Itachi snorted, but covered his mouth to hide a smile.  
"Silly Shisui-san, it's for Sasuke-chan!" scolded Izumi playfully, as Mikoto set down the cake down. "But he can share! Right, Sasuke-chan?" she cooed, reaching out the pinch the baby's chubby cheek. Sasuke whined loudly and batted his tiny hands against her own until she withdrew, sighing from the rejection. _Again._ Itachi chuckled at the exchange, still finding their small feud comical as Sasuke pouted and clutched at his big brother's sleeves possessively. Shisui whistled, mouthing, _"Burn!"_ and Izumi shot the older kid a pouty glare, her cheeks blazing.  
Izumi wore a light purple yukata dress patterned with cherry blossom trees, her long brown hair pulled back by a flower comb also decorated with little cherry blossoms. With her cheeks blushing a rosy pink and her eyes shining brown like the tree branches on her dress, she looked lovely. Itachi remembered how his mouth instantly dried when she first arrived at the house. He thought she looked like one of those young feudal princesses who flourished in the simplicity of spring flowers and warm sunshine rather than the heavy luxuries of expensive kimonos, white make-up, cropped eyebrows, and bulky jewelry. The beauty mark that naturally perched on her cheekbone made her look even more like she could have been mistaken for a real princess for those who didn't already know her, something he had never noticed until now. Right then, Itachi realized he had never seen her dressed up so formerly before….though nothing could ever compete with the open warmth of her cheerful smile when she greeted him.  
Seeing her like this would definitely be a sight he would never forget, even if he wanted to.  
Mikoto was also wearing a yukata dress, a peach color decorated with white orange blossoms and jasmine, her black hair pinned up into a loose bun with two bronze chopsticks, looking gorgeous as ever. Smiling, the matriarch reached out and gently stroked her youngest's cheek. "Happy Birthday, Sasuke," she said, and sighed happily. "My baby boy. I love you. Both of you." Her eyes misted up with all the love a mother can give her children. Itachi smiled in return and nodded, while Sasuke babbled curiously with another big smile. Shisui just rolled his eyes, grinning at the mushy stuff, while Izumi barely contained a squeal of adoration behind her hands.  
The brothers just looked so cute together, especially when Itachi held Sasuke like he was the treasure of the world. Though Izumi was a tad envious of all the affection Itachi showered over his baby brother, seeing him happy made her happy. Being able to see the emotions he rarely showed in public-his smile, his laughter-was a privilege that Izumi cherished above everything else. Even if it only took his baby brother to bring out the best of him, it just made Izumi love Itachi even more.  
Still smiling while everyone started singing 'Happy Birthday' to Sasuke, Itachi caught Izumi staring at him. Izumi's heart thumped faster at the genuine joy on his face, his beautiful ebony eyes filled with mirth and tenderness.  
Was it really directed at her? She blushed, not being to look away from the beautiful sight.  
But then after a moment, his face slacked a little and the mirth in his eyes faded into something that looked like wariness, causing Izumi's heart to plummet instantly. Her own smile dropped a little as she broke away from his gaze, pressing her lips together in an effort to hide the sting in her heart. _That's right_ , she thought sadly. _I can never compete with Sasuke-chan. I can never make Itachi-kun happy like he can. Will I ever be able to?_  
Little did she know, as Izumi was looking away, that Itachi was reminded of his self-ultimatum. He was dreading about telling her about his promotion...especially when she looked so….so cheerful right now. She looked so carefree and….angelic.  
"Itachi?" Itachi blinked when he realized his mother was calling out to him. Smiling, she gestured toward the cake. "Would you like to blow out the candle for your brother?" Mikoto offered.  
Itachi looked at the little flame of the candle, flickering and breathing.  
A weapon of death...and a source of life. To bring pain, or to bring warmth. To bring the end, and then new beginnings.  
The nation's emblem.  
_Fire consumes the body...but it revives the soul..._  
 _There is death...and there is life...what will it be for either of us, when I blow out this flame?_  
 _If there was such thing as wishes..._  
Itachi leaned over, the flame's light dancing in his wondrous dark eyes, and blew out the candle.  
...

Paper lanterns were lit around the house, sending fans of gold and red light around the darkness of the night. The crickets were chirping and the frogs were croaking. In the backyard garden, fireflies floated around the plants and the pond glittered like tiny, dancing stars around the calm ripples of the water, warm and live. On the backyard veranda, Itachi could see his mother and father sitting together on the edge, right at the foot of the fish pond. Still in his jounin police attire, Fugaku had his arm wrapped around his wife, as she leaned against him with sleepy eyes, while his other held onto Sasuke, who was had fallen asleep in his father's lap, clutching his shirt as he snuggled into the warmth of his parent and sucking his thumb.  
It was one of the very few moments that Itachi would see his father, the hardened patriarch of the Uchiha Clan and the Chief of the Leaf Police Force, look so completely peaceful and content with both his mother and brother.  
Itachi felt a soft smile relax his features as he watched. Though disappointed his father couldn't celebrate with them, he was glad Fugaku gave Sasuke some well-deserved attention when he came home. After knowing his infant brother was overjoyed to have his father acknowledge and hold him, that had been enough. But during rare moments like these, something in his mind always whispered that he will unlikely be seeing this side of his father for quite a long while, so it was times like these when the young prodigy would just stop whatever he was doing and savor precious moments like these.  
Hearing Izumi giggling, Itachi glanced over to see her seated in Shisui's lap, holding out a glass jar as some tiny fireflies hovered nearby. All three of them were seated on a branch of one of the garden's cherry blossom trees. While Itachi perched by himself on the farther end, Shisui was holding her close to his body to keep her from falling near the trunk as the little brunette reached out to catch the fireflies.  
"Steady..." Shisui told her, as the two eyed the incoming fireflies. "Here they come..." Then she caught them in the jar with a snap of the lid. "Got 'em!"  
"I did!" gasped Izumi in delight, and held the jar up to her face in amazement. The fireflies' glow danced from her wondrous brown eyes. "They're so pretty! Do you see, Itachi-kun? Aren't they beautiful?" Shisui chuckled in amusement and tugged her hair playfully.  
Itachi smiled at them…but then suddenly felt very uncomfortable with Izumi being in Shisui's lap for some reason. Shisui was just holding her so close, too close...He clenched his jaw and reprimanded himself for being ridiculous. Izumi was in Shisui's lap so she wouldn't fall from the tree, that's all. He had to remember that she wasn't prodigy like either of them, so she didn't have enough balance or chakra control yet. And besides...  
This was Shisui, not Iwao or Kamano. He was like a big brother to him, and now to Izumi. Shisui would never harm Izumi in any way, or...or try to have her to himself. The older boy knew how much she meant to Itachi.  
"Okay, time to let them out," Shisui told her, while they watched the fireflies in the jar. Izumi groaned sadly.  
"But why can't I keep them?" she complained.  
"They don't last long in captivity, or in life, really. It's best to let them be free."  
Izumi sighed, and smiled sadly. "Alright." She undid the top of her jar and the fireflies came flying out. They all watched them float away and hover over the pond, where a full moon shined across its shimmering surface.  
"Shisui."  
Shisui looked up to see Itachi looking at him, while Izumi continued to gaze down at the pond. Itachi jerked his head toward Izumi, his eyes saying it all. Shisui's smile faded and nodded in understanding. He already knew Itachi was planning to tell Izumi, and wanted to do it alone.  
"Well, I think it's time I headed home," Shisui said cheerfully, his smile returning when he shifted Izumi closer to the tree trunk. "Got another mission tomorrow. Think you'll be alright climbing down, Izumi-chan?"  
"Yeah," Izumi claimed with a nod, leaning against the tree trunk. Shisui glanced at Itachi and winked.  
"Take care, Itachi. You kids behave yourselves."  
Face heating up, Itachi was about to open his mouth, but Shisui leapt across the higher tree branches and ended up disappearing over the rooftop of the Uchiha mansion, into the night. Itachi sighed. Couldn't Shisui ever take the front door like everyone else?  
Finally, Itachi was alone with Izumi. He moved closer to her until they were seated side by side, their feet dangling over the water while they watched the fireflies dance in the moonlight. "Shisui-san is really funny," said Izumi with a chuckle. "This was fun, wasn't it?"  
"Ah." After some shy hesitation, Itachi glanced over at her and smiled softly. "...You look nice," he whispered, genuinely.  
Gasping softly, a blush bloomed over Izumi's cheeks, noticeable from the lanterns' lighting. Glancing quickly at him before looking away, she smiled shyly. "Thanks...so do you," she said in return.  
They fell silent and just watched the swirling tides of pond's water play with silver reflection of the moon, the hollow tap of a bamboo stick heard ten seconds apart from the pouring fountain somewhere among the garden rocks. Izumi glanced over at Itachi, and noticed that he looked more sad than content, by the way his mouth was set grimly and his eyes drooped in troubled thought. It reminded her of that brief shadow that passed over his expression earlier when he looked at her.  
Deciding not to put this aside any longer, she turned to face him. "Itachi-kun, what is it?" Izumi asked gently. Her worry was shown clearly in her features. "I can tell something is wrong. Won't you tell me?"  
Itachi was still and silent for a long time, staring ahead with that same solemn expression. Folding her legs under the branch, Izumi waited patiently.  
Finally, Itachi's head dropped. "I lied," he confessed to her quietly.  
Izumi froze. "About what?" she said slowly, watching him carefully. What lie? What could he have possibly...Then a thought struck her with fear. _Is he talking about his Shadow Clone from weeks ago?_  
Itachi hesitated and looked up toward the moon, as if it reflected all his deepest thoughts and memories. "At the Academy, do you remember when our sensei brought me out in the hallway, the day after everyone found out about my Shadow Clone?"  
Izumi nodded slowly. How could she forget?  
During that time, she had been terrified that it would be the last time she would ever see Itachi before he would disappear from her life once again. Like he had disappeared when they were four years-old, back when they went to the Uchiha Primary Class. Like a few other kids that were considered the most exceptional ones among the toddlers, he had been called out by the Uchiha grown-ups that had stopped by in her classroom and they were all led outside. They never returned, and she never saw him again until almost two years later at the memorial site. It was like he had vanished along with those kids….but then to be the only one to reappear, acting more closed off than she had ever remembered him being.  
Nobody would tell her where those kids went or what had happened to them. Not even Itachi would tell her, because whenever she asked, he would just shut her out and walk away, pretending she didn't exist until the next day. Those days were the worst. So after two failed attempts of asking him, before they started the Academy together, Izumi never tried again, in fear that he would decide not to bother being friends with her anymore if she asked a third time.  
Itachi swallowed. "I didn't get in trouble like I told you. That wasn't what he wanted to talk to me about."  
Izumi frowned in confusion. "Oh." That was good, she guessed. "But why did you lie? What did he want?"  
The only sound that was heard between them were the crickets chirping and the frogs croaking. Somewhere out in the night, an owl made a _hoo hoo_.  
Itachi looked at Izumi now, his expression carefully blank...except for his eyes, which seemed to glisten nervously. "They're going to have me graduate early," he managed to explain. When Izumi didn't react, he continued, "He told me that I'm going to switch to the seniors' class, when the semester starts, to prepare for the graduation exam. He said it was the Hokage's decision, after learning about my Shadow Clone. I'm being promoted, Izumi. I'm going to be a genin."  
Izumi was silent. Her expression was blank, as though still processing what he had told her. Itachi watched her carefully, his own face unreadable, but his nerves were on edge. What was she thinking? Was she shocked? Angry? Sad? _Please say something,_ he begged her quietly.  
"A genin?" she whispered, finally blinking.  
Itachi smiled a little nervously and nodded. "Yeah."  
"After the first year?"  
"H-Hai."  
Izumi slowly looked away, gazing down at her dangling feet. Her eyes hid behind her strands. "W-Wow, Itachi-kun, that's...that's...that's wonderful! I'm so happy for you."  
Itachi noticed how her body was trembling. Was she upset with him? "Izumi?" He reached out to her, but hesitated before touching her shoulder. He felt lost and helpless, not knowing what else to say.  
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" said Izumi quietly, her face still overshadowed by her hair strands.  
Itachi swallowed and dropped his gaze. "I-I don't know," he whispered. "I guess...I didn't want you to be sad."  
"Sad? Why would I be sad? This is great!" squeaked Izumi, her voice now cracking. Itachi winced, now feeling the sorrow radiating off of his friend.  
He reached out again and took her shoulder, having her turn around slowly. "Izumi," he pleaded. As he suspected, Izumi's eyes were filled with tears and her jaw was trembling. When she looked up, a tear slipped, and she quickly swiped it away, but more followed. Then a hiccup escaped her mouth, more like a sob.  
She tried to look away. "I'm sorry," Izumi gasped, wiping at her eyes, causing Itachi's heart to throb. "I'm sorry."  
"Izumi, it's okay," Itachi whispered, reaching up to help wipe away her tears with both his thumbs, causing Izumi's breath to escape. When she couldn't look at him, he ended up hugging her her, placing her head on his shoulder comfortingly. She was the only person he could hug like this, besides Sasuke. "It's okay..."  
It was okay for her to be sad. It was okay for her be upset. He was not very good at understanding other people's feelings, but he understood hers right now. Because he felt sad, too. This was why he dreaded telling her.  
"I-It's just that..." Izumi murmured, still letting him hug her. Her breath and tears were hot on his yukata. "I had hoped...that I would be able to catch up with you. Don't be mad at me, but...I think I was a little jealous, too. Because you excel in everything so easily, and I'm...I'll never be as good as you, even with the Sharingan. I hoped to control it soon, so that maybe I can catch up with you...so that I can follow you and learn everything more quickly...but I can't. Not yet. I'm not special like you or Shisui..."  
"Yes, you are!" said Itachi, hoarsely and held her more tightly. "You are to me. You always have been. I wouldn't have done this without you." Izumi hiccuped, and Itachi smoothed a hand over her soft hair, which smelled of flowers. "I meant what I said before. It wouldn't be the same without you, Izumi."  
Izumi pulled back and met Itachi's eyes, smiling now with a tear-stained face. Her brown eyes were bright like starlight. "It wouldn't be the same for me, either," she murmured, reaching up to play with his growing bangs between her small fingers, causing Itachi's eyelids to droop in relaxation. He liked when she did that. "But Itachi-kun...I really am happy for you. You're my best friend, too. We may not be in the same classes anymore, but we still live in the same district. I can walk to school with you if you still want to, and still eat lunch with you if you want...I will still support you, Itachi-kun, and I want you to know that I will always have faith in you and your abilities. I know you..."  
...

_(Four Months Later)_

_"I know things will get harder, and I know that you feel pain like the rest of us...you just hide it better than most..."_  
 _"Itachi Uchiha!"_  
When his name was called, his light footsteps departed steadily from the line of graduates, who had yet to receive their forehead protectors. His face was completely stoic. His black hair was longer, tied back into a small ponytail. He was the smallest among the others, but his aura was the strongest.  
_"I know you will best every kid in your new class and you will continue to be better."_  
"Congratulations, Uchiha!" The jounin standing before him took the leaf band from the many properly aligned on the table and presented it to the seven year-old valedictorian. "You are officially a genin."  
Two small, calloused hands accepted the Leaf forehead protector.  
_"Not because you're a prodigy…"_  
The hitai-ate was wrapped firmly around his forehead. His fingers swept lightly over the metal plate bearing the Leaf emblem of his village.  
_"...but because you're Itachi Uchiha, one of the best people I know, in every way..."_  
Itachi Uchiha turned and took a seat alone at one of the desks, wearing his hitai-ate proudly and folding his arms across the desk to wait for the other students to receive their own.  
So here he was, a genin now. One who will soon be assigned a team. He was a real shinobi now.  
When the instructor started congratulating them all, Itachi could feel the hateful glare of Iwao Akimichi and the other bullies from one of the desks below. He could feel many other hard looks pointed in his direction, but he paid no mind to them. It has been an interesting four months with them, but not once did they attack him or anyone from his former class ever again...because he _may_ have had them believe this silent threat he hinted at them the last time he caught them conspiring. They were no longer his concern, though he prayed that he would team up with anybody but Iwao and his comrades. Anyone at all.  
_"...so I choose to follow you, no matter what."_  
_Thank you, Izumi. Thank you for everything._  
"...and now," the jounin announced to the new genin after concluding his speech. "We will begin naming our new teams."


	7. Sweet Dango

**Chapter 7**

**Sweet Dango**

It has been ten months since the Graduation Ceremony. Ten very active months. And since then, Itachi had been placed in Squad Two.

Being a genin turned out to be much busier than the Ninja Academy, even for Itachi. It took much time with all the training and missions his team received, though Itachi managed to breeze right through the earlier ones during the first few months. Most of the time.

Missions that involved snow plowing, catching cats, walking dogs, weed picking, and assistant traveling had been no sweat. The real challenge had been the slow adjustment to his older but excessively immature teammates. Then there was his sensei, Yuki Minazuki. There was nothing that remotely interesting or intimidating about his sensei. He was an average, middle-aged jounin with oddly ordinary-looking with a ragged stubble, an unkempt ponytail, bushy brows, a large nose, and a small mouth which often forced an awkward smile that never reached the timidness in his eyes. While the man wasted no time attempting to exercise their constantly poor teamwork, he was mostly left bemused with the two older members' eruptive bickering from the moment they first introduced themselves, making Itachi's first impression toward his new team ridiculously unimpressed.

From the very beginning, he knew that it was not going to be easy working with these people.

During mission-free hours, they would continue boosting up their levels of training, such as chakra control from the feet, the use of ninjutsus and genjutsu while sparring, tracking, and racing.

Naturally, Itachi beat them all, having used up all these times to perfect his newest techniques, determined in time to reach his fullest potential. He slowly began to learn, through the slightly tougher missions like rescues, retrievals, body guarding, and undercover information gathering, that he could no longer rely on only himself to win a battle when he was now accompanied by two other teammates.

His teammates, Tenma Izumo and Shinko Inari, were quite a characteristic pair.

Back when taking the senior class with them, Itachi didn't really associate with anyone, but that didn't mean he lived under a rock. Not completely. He was observant of students that stood out every now and then. For instance, this one student, Iruka Umino, had a reputation for being the class clown, especially for every slip-up he made in physical education, making the whole class (except for Itachi) laugh. Itachi also remembered that it was the same Iruka who fetched the medics the day Izumi was attacked by bullies, which was probably why the Uchiha spared an attentive glance toward the older kid once or twice when he wasn't looking.

Shinko Inari, the female of the group, was a peppy, mousy-haired girl who wore cut-off clothing, a bandana over her head (now a style from her hitai-ate) with two long-braided pigtails, and large almond-shaped black eyes. With civilian parents and no clan, she was labeled a foreign citizen of Konohakure ever since she and her family moved their private business into the village when she was nine years-old, her county accent still strong.

Shinko had that sly, girlish attitude that liked to tease, to mollycoddle, and to punish. Like all the other twelve year-old females in the class, it wasn't that Shinko had some kind of creepy crush on him like he had been preparing for.

It was worse. She _babied_ him. Treating him like a cute little kid like she would a fluffy kitten. He managed to keep his cool whenever she cooed, hugged, or played with his hair, sometimes calling him "Itachi-chan," but _really_ it was embarrassing. He was a killer, a prodigy, a surviving shinobi fighter from the Third Great Ninja War, and his maturity scale outranked hers by _a lot_. His reputation would be very shaken if any of his clan members saw him being cuddled like a teddy bear.

Sure, all the girls in the graduating class thought that Itachi had looks to die for at his young age, but it turned out that his "looks" to them were adorable, not cool. Also, they preferred older guys. So they all settled in babying him: cooing, hugging, and pinching his cheeks with every chance they had...unless Itachi escaped them first. This had even encouraged him to study the Transportation Jutsu with Shisui. Ever since she became his teammate, however, Shinko naturally became like a bossy older sister to him, but a protective and very considerate one, because she had another guy on her team to annoy and tease.

While not that much of a fighter, she was not scared easily, her cooking was great, and as a kunoichi, she had excellent chakra control, which was resourceful in her studies on medical ninjutu. Although it seemed she still had a long way to go, her skills as a healer surpassed the few years she had missed in the Ninja Academy and allowed her to graduate, since it was technically required for every team to have at least one person who knew medical ninjutsu. That rule may have be forced to change soon, because ever since the war had finally ceased and Tsunade Senju had left the village, the ratings of having exceptional medical ninja in the Hidden Leaf has become increasingly short, dropping down to a 1 to 5 chance of anyone, even more so for boys, becoming interested in attending any medical classes.

In short, having a good medical ninja on a team was now rare, and Shinko was the best one the Academy could provide. Her scores were the highest out of the only four members who had attended, including Hana Inuzuka, who was the youngest of those four. It was for this reason Shinko Inari was put in Team Two with Itachi.

Tenma Izumo was from another clan of the Hidden Leaf, the only son and heir of its patriarch. In Itachi's opinion, if everyone thought that he was stuck-up, Tenma was one of his own. Not to mention loud-mouthed, short-tempered, haughty, prideful, and reckless. Everyone at school called him "Speedy Tenma," because he was the fastest in his class before Itachi came along. Sometime during the second semester, when Itachi was transferred to the senior class, he also attempted to bully the young Uchiha because of his jealousy for being the top student, very much like Kamano was.

It was no secret that it was his clan's belief that the Uchiha clan were behind the Nine-tails attack on the village. While he had never physically attacked Itachi, or Izumi (either he never had the opportunity, or he had heard of Iwao and his gang's defeat, nobody knew), his verbal insults and threats often drove Itachi's well-known patience at times, even now.

There had been this one particular time when Tenma and his friends had confronted both Itachi and Izumi in the school hallway during the end of lunch with threatening intentions (not Iwao's group, thankfully). Laying heavy blame on them for being Uchiha, the clan who were responsible for the Nine-tails attack, leading to the deaths of some family members of theirs, they did not hold back in assaulting them with dirty insults and threats of domination. While Itachi had been running out of polite words to ask them to leave them alone, the hostility between the two sides had spiked. It had looked like Tenma was going to attack him when Itachi refused to forfeit to with the older kid's demands, but Izumi reacted first and ended up activating her Sharingan.

Unlike with Iwao's group, her red eyes had clearly spooked Tenma's group and sent them scattering away like the cowards they were. Once they were gone, Izumi had passed out on the spot from instantly drained chakra, and Itachi had to carry her to the infirmary yet again. He had stayed with her after that, even through class hours, until she woke up.

But as time went by for Team 2, while Tenma and his haughty attitude hadn't really changed, he proved to be skillful, focused, and courageous, which were valuable enough assets for their missions as genin.

Itachi had in time come to admire him greatly for that. Almost as much as he admired Shisui, surprisingly (in a very different way, since Tenma and Shisui were nothing alike). But Tenma and Shinko to him, even after ten months, were just partners and comrades for their missions. Besides, Tenma always seemed like an older, nastier version of Kamano (who may or may not not have close relations with the Izumo clan, Itachi didn't bother dwelling into), but Itachi didn't want to admit their relationship was anything more than what it was supposed to be.

Itachi had already come to accept that he wasn't good at letting others in, save for very few people, and didn't bother trying to change that. Sasuke, Shisui, and Izumi were enough.

But even with them, his most precious people, he was still working on opening up more, whenever possible.  
...

After returning from a very recent mission that involved retrieving a priceless artifact (nobody got killed thankfully), Itachi casually walked along the streets of Konoha in the afternoon sunlight, feeling very buoyant, more than ready to return after a long line of successful missions from the last few weeks. He was exhausted, but too happy to be home to let it show.

Sasuke will definitely be happy to see him. He wanted so badly to hold his little brother again. He usually preferred going on missions, being useful as a ninja, protecting the village, and working hard to achieve his dream, but until he had his precious baby brother in his arms and heard him cry out, "Niisan," a most beautiful name to be called, Itachi could breathe properly again.

It felt like forever since he had seen Sasuke and his parents. He hardly ever got to even go home anymore ever since he became a genin, and when he did, he stayed no more than a day or so, sometimes even less. Apparently his team was assigned more missions than any other team, because the village leaders were very well aware of Itachi's usefulness. They were determined to use his abilities to continue protecting the village.

They had put the Izumo Clan heir and the Uchiha clan heir on the same team for a reason. Itachi had been kept so busy, in between missions, training, being clan heir, dutiful son, and a big brother that he now found himself tracing small tired, age lines under his eyes whenever he looked into his reflection, to the point when they never went away.

Itachi saw Shisui sometimes during missions with his own assigned team. The two teams would partner up for more advanced missions, such as rescues, or body guarding, but with the older Uchiha prodigy in the process of being promoted to Jounin now (at only twelve, too), Itachi hadn't seen him lately.

Breaking out of his thoughts, Itachi then spotted his father, Fugaku, who was deep in conversation with fellow Uchiha Police officers near their department building. It looked serious.

"Tousan!" he called, and started running over.

Fugaku looked over and spotted his son. Itachi heard him murmur, "We'll discuss this later," before finally halting before his elder. The officers left. "Back from a mission, Itachi?"

"Ah." Itachi nodded happily.

They both walked back to the Uchiha compound together. The path was filled with people, including some visitors from outside of the clan trying out the shops in the district.

"We haven't walked together like this in a while," said Fugaku to his son.

Itachi grinned. "Well, I'm a genin now...and I have missions," he said.

Fugaku closed his eyes. "Oh, I see..." He looked around, then frowned. "That's right. Since the Uchiha moved here..."

Itachi's smile faded as he listened, his good spirits now dampening. Was his father and the clan still going on about this?

"Two years have passed. We were pushed to the outskirts of the village, and the upper echelons took away our authority...Many still voice strong dissatisfaction toward the methods. You're aware of that, too, right?"

Itachi nodded. "Hn." Unfortunately. Ever since he became genin, he had been allowed to participate in the Uchiha meetings at the Nakano Shrine. Shisui had already been forced to attend them from the start. Since then, whatever tensions he had sensed within the clan in the beginning have then become clear to him. Itachi quickly became distressed after learning that his clansmen had not only not let go of their grudge against the village, but had been growing worse without his knowing.

Personally he never had any problems with the move. He actually thought their new area was better than before, surrounded by a peaceful environment that owned part of the forest, a lake, and widespread grassy fields, perfect for training, having picnics, and playing for children. Most of all, it was the perfect place for Sasuke to grow up and have a happy childhood, so what was there to complain about?

Itachi understood his clan's concerns and that the situation was unfair. He was not ignorant of the village's persecution against the Uchiha clan, but that didn't mean the conflict should continue to grow like a virus. Right?

It was then that he noticed nearby people smiling toward them and his mood lifted again.

"We want to regain our power one day," continued Fugaku, lost in his own dark thoughts, "and step out of the darkness into the light-"

"Tousan, look!" interrupted Itachi before he could continue, and smiled when Fugaku looked over to see both civilians and Uchiha members smiling, nodding, and waving at the patriarch. Fugaku blushed a little and waved them off. Itachi laughed.

"What's so funny?" asked Fugaku, eying his son's cheerful mood.

"Sorry Tousan," said Itachi, lightly. "You're the face of the Uchiha. I'm proud to be able to walk alongside you."

And he really was. He still held his father in high regard, despite his flaws, and hoped that this will remind him that the outsiders who were present in this district, greeting him like an old friend, was proof that not everyone outside their clan held any suspicions against them. The Uchiha would follow him out of loyalty. It all relied on his father's decision, and Itachi was determined to give him a reason to not go through with the clan's power-hungry demands, least of all his 'most trusted' subordinate, Yashiro Uchiha. No matter their complaints, his father, as patriarch, had the power to prevent the clan from doing anything drastic, even to force them to make peace with the village's decision.

That was all Itachi ever wanted for them: peace.

"Enough flattery," said the embarrassed Fugaku. Then he allowed a soft smirk. "Should we get your favorite snack on the way home?"

Itachi's smile widened, his mouth already watering for his favorite treat. "Okay!"

When they found the Dumplings shop, Itachi was disappointed to find the _Closed_ and _Sold Out_ signs patched all over the entrance. Just when he finally came home, too, with some free time with his father.

"It can't be helped if they're sold out," sighed Fugaku, placing a hand briefly on Itachi's shoulder.

 _No, I suppose it can't,_ the eight year-old prodigy thought sadly. It had been very thoughtful of his father, though.

"Itachi-kun?"

Itachi's head jerked up, heart skipping a beat at the voice. That very familiar, bell-sweet voice he knew so well. He immediately found the source of that voice standing near the shop, staring back at him with equal surprise.

"Izumi..." he breathed. It had been so long...

She wore a sleeveless purple, high-collar shirt, blue-violet knee length sweatpants, and orange arm warmers pulled snugly over her wrists. Her brown hair was down, now waist-length, slightly lighter than he remembered from the sun. She looked taller, having lost some baby fat and replaced with some slim muscle in her arms and legs. Her dark brown eyes were large and beautiful as ever, the tiny mole still resided under her right eye. In her arms was a bag of dumplings from the shop.

She looked good. Really good.

"Ah, Izumi," said Fugaku. "Fancy running into you."

"Hai, you too, Fugaku-sama," replied Izumi, smiling politely while bowing her head. She then turned to Itachi. "How are you, Itachi-kun?"

Itachi blinked. "O-Oh, I'm good. You?" Izumi nodded in reply.

She seemed...different. It was not just her fitness. Then again, it's been nearly a year, but even so...What has been happening to her? There had been a time when she would come running to him with a huge smile and a huge sparkle in her eyes. She would call out his name, hug him affectionately, or would start talking nonstop to him on a daily basis. She would then stick by his side for as long as possible like a loving puppy. She was very open, unashamed of showing her joys and affections toward him, just being a child.

Was this her trying to act grownup...like he normally did?

"Did you just get back?" asked Izumi.

"Hai. We were sent to retrieve a stolen artifact for a wealthy merchant. Our mission was successful."

"Oh, that's good." Izumi shuffled the bag in her arms awkwardly, her eyes drifting towards her feet. "I, um...I'm sorry. I can see you're busy, so..."

"I'm not!" Itachi blurted out, causing Izumi's head to shoot back up in surprise. Itachi felt his cheeks heat up and cleared his throat. "I-I'm not," he said more calmly. He glanced up at his father, who gave a casual "Hn," which was enough confirmation, and turned back to Izumi. "I'm not," he repeated. "Busy, I mean. Are you?"

Izumi gaped at him...before a cheerful smile grew in her expression as she chuckled, "No, I'm not."

 _There she is._ Itachi smiled.

"Hn, well I am," said Fugaku, squinting toward the sun. "I have to be heading back now. Itachi, take care and let your mother know that you're home."

"Hai."

When his father departed, Itachi and Izumi were alone.

Neither of them said a word, so Itachi started walking first. Izumi was standing still when he smoothly passed her, but was so close that his arm brushed lightly against her elbow, his air sweeping her bangs with his own.

The brief skin contact made her shiver. She turned to watch him walk away, his back facing her, revealing the small ponytail he grew out.

Memories of when she first tried to talk to him came flooding back, also of how he completely ignored her at the time...but she smiled to herself as her arms tightened around her bag of dango, and began to trail after him.

"Where are we going?" she asked him curiously, after minutes of walking past buildings.

"You'll see." There was a positive tone in his soft voice. Izumi wondered what he was thinking.

He hadn't seen her since the day before he graduated. He wasn't able to, because he used up whatever free time he had with Sasuke, naturally being a big brother first before a friend. Whenever he did try to see her for the first few months as a genin, eventually finding the time, she was always in the middle of something else, like at the Ninja Academy or family duties. A few times during those first couple of months did he come by the school to watch from a distance, hidden from sight, just to see her playing tag or picking flowers with her friends, or getting flocked by more fan boys (much to his annoyance) on the school playground. He did come to her house once a random Saturday, not long after her eighth birthday, believing that she would have to be free by then, but her mother was the one who answered the door, looking tired. She said that Izumi was busy with personal family matters Noriro had set up. Itachi had wanted to ask, but knowing it was not his business, he merely asked Hazuki to tell Izumi he stopped by, before he left, feeling sad and disappointed.

A few hours later, his team was assigned another mission. They had been gone for weeks, and the chances of seeing Izumi grew very slim, based on a busy schedule, or Itachi's deteriorating courage. The missions for Team Two had become longer and tougher during that time. They had even come as far as being assigned an assassination mission on a Iwagakure spy who had been posing as a vegetable peddler in the village, since ANBU were currently unavailable at the time.

Eventually, he gave up trying to see her and just read the letters that she always sent to his house, decorated in stickers and doodles, apologizing for not being able to come over and kept telling him to be careful. He never answered her letters, but he kept every single one of them tucked safely in a box under his bed.

They always ended with _Love, Izumi._

He probably missed her the most, but he couldn't afford to think about her. It hurt too much. And it often deterred his focus with an empty feeling in his chest. He had figured that maybe Izumi decided to move on with her life and focus on her studies, like he reserved in focusing on his own. It was logical, but it didn't hurt any less. He wondered what she could possibly doing that was keeping her away. Knowing her as he did last, she would always find every opportunity to spend time with him. They had even made it work during the Academy after he had transferred to the senior class. But now...

They were now walking outside the compound, and soon, Izumi found they were near the training grounds, crossing the pier facing the lake. One of Itachi's favorite spots in the whole village.

Izumi felt nostalgia creep over her. She remembered two summers ago when watching and cheering for Itachi as he performed an impressive amount of ninjutsu while walking on water. She especially remembered her own pathetic attempts, but Itachi was always there to help her get back up and try again, his unwavering patience with her like a warm candle that gave her more confidence in herself. In the end, she had succeeded in making a fireball jutsu the size of her own body. It was only half the size of Itachi's, which was usually as big a small house, but accomplishing it was one of the proudest moments of her life. Especially with him there watching her getting stronger.

Those were fun times.

Itachi sat at the edge of the dock and Izumi, smiling, followed suite beside him. Placing her bag of dango down, she let the sun warm her skin before glancing at him. "I'm sorry, Itachi-kun," she said uneasily. "Are you sure I didn't interrupt you and your father?"

Itachi smiled shyly. "Yeah, it's okay," he said softly. His eyes automatically moved to the Dumpling bag next to her. "It's been a while," he added. And he couldn't help but feel guilty for that. He may have very busy as a genin, knowing that he wouldn't have much time with his old life anymore, but ten months of not seeing each other while living in the same district was just ridiculous. He should have tried harder, but instead he let his discomfort take over to the point of refusing to see or think about her.

"Yeah, it's the first time since you became a genin," agreed Izumi. Then her eyes widened in realization. "Oh, that's right! I'm sorry I didn't get you anything for your promotion...I didn't even come to congratulate you!" she cried out, startling Itachi with her sudden hysteria. She bowed her head in shame. "I'm really sorry."

"You don't have to apologize so much..." Itachi tried to assure her, but Izumi was already digging through her white bag of dumplings.

"I know that this doesn't qualify as a gift," said Izumi, as she pulled out a small package and unwrapped it, "but if you don't mind, would you have one?" She presented it with two hands, her face kind and hopeful.

When Itachi looked, his mouth watered at the sight of five sticks of delicious, sugary dango in colors of green, yellow, and pink. Still warm and fresh, their sweet, sugary smell reaching his nose.

"Okaasan likes the tricolored ones from that shop," said Izumi proudly.

Itachi remained silent, keeping all signs of temptation to himself.

When observing Itachi's silent, blank, and prideful expression, not missing the delight and craving in his eyes, she decided to tease him, " _But_ I guess someone like you who's brilliant, and who excels in ninjutsu, and taijutsu, and whizzed through the academy in only a year, wouldn't have a sweet tooth after all." When she moved it away, she pretended not to notice Itachi's expression fall slightly at the loss and sighed dramatically. "Sorry for just assuming," she moaned. Then her sad expression brightened instantly. "Well, I guess since that I already opened one..." She picked up a stick. Itachi's face started to light up, his hand twitching to take the treat, until Izumi said cheerfully, "I guess I'll just eat them all by myself."

Itachi's face fell and he withdrew, disappointed.

Izumi opened her mouth wide to take a large bite of that delicious dango. Itachi gulped visibly, watching both her and the treat with boiling envy.

Sensing his silence, Izumi paused and glanced over at Itachi, freezing at the openly fierce (yet adorable) glare he directed at her, screaming out _Stop torturing me_ and _Surrender the dango or I'll make you!_

She sweat-dropped nervously. Maybe she teased him a little bit too much. So smiling slightly, she decided to give him a break. "Oh, don't tell me," Izumi said, before holding out the treat as a peace offering, "would you like one?"

Itachi's pout became surprise when the dango hovered temptingly in front of his eyes. Then finding himself staring at her face, he jerked and quickly looked away, hiding a fierce blush staining across his cheeks. He could not believe his own reaction. Nobody ever attempted torturing him like this, even if they had known... and Izumi was just so...

Her smile became sly. Izumi leaned toward him, wiggling her eyebrows. "Itachi-kun..." she cooed sweetly, trying to meet his hidden eyes. She waved the dango under his nose. "I know you want it," the Uchiha girl sang.

Itachi's pink face darkened. Then she was leaning much closer, whispering in his ear, "So soft and sugary, hot, freshly made..." Itachi gulped again, mouth watering, his heart pounding hard when her breath ticked his ear, making him shiver, along with the sweet scent to dango. "Last chance, Itachi-kun!" She started to pull the dango away.

Oh, Kami, help him. One of his hand shot up and caught her wrist, making Izumi gasp. They stared at each other's eyes. Then, more gently, he moved her hand holding the stick of colored dumplings closer to his face. Izumi watched wordlessly, as Itachi took a large bite out of the whole first pastry, his shiny ebony eyes still fixed on her brown with heated intensity as the flavor filled his mouth. His gaze was soft, but vindictive. Both warm and cunning with a look intense enough to make all his fangirls fall over...He was satisfied to see her sly expression melt into wide-eyed surprise and smirked a little.

He had never tasted sweeter dango before now.

Izumi's heart pounded rapidly as she was bewitched by Itachi Uchiha's dreamy eyes (and he was doing it on purpose, the weasel!). Her head had become dizzy with nervousness and excitement. Finding it hard to breathe, her arm trembled in his warm grip. She could feel his warm, steamy breath over her knuckles, tickling her skin as he placed his mouth over the dango. Oh, Kami, if she didn't already know him for a long time, or had some Uchiha composure within her, she probably would have fainted from such a hot sight!

Then, watching his face melt in enjoyment, his beautiful eyes become so dreamy while fluttering closed, he took the whole treat to himself from her slackened hand and resumed in enjoying the dango. Breaking from her trance, Izumi burst out laughing and selected another from the package. "Oh, Itachi-kun!" she gasped, before taking a bite. Even then, her smile and laughter was muffled with sticky dumpling.

When both swallowed, Itachi glanced at her, smiling sheepishly. "Is it so strange?" he said softly.

Izumi shook her head. "Oh, no, it isn't that," she said, lightly. "It's just that I've known you for quite some time, but I never knew what your favorite foods were."  
Itachi felt his cheeks heat up from her gaze and glanced sideways. "Rank and gender have nothing to do with what someone likes to eat," he mumbled.

Izumi nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that's true. Sorry." Then when noticing the pink tint tracing Itachi's cheeks, the image of his pouty glare from earlier resurfaced. It just looked so frightening goofy in her mind that Izumi couldn't control the giggles that spilled out of her, making it hard to breathe.

Itachi watched her in surprise and confusion, her body shaking with laughter, even with her dango attempting to hide her smile and pink cheeks in vain. Again, she glowed. Like an angel, in his eyes. Everything about her was warm and angelic. Her laugh was such a sweet sound, reminding him of the songs from bells and birds in the spring. So pure, carefree and musical.

 _"You're beautiful..."_ he whispered mindlessly.

"H-Hah...What was that...?" Izumi glanced at him, still trying to control her laughter, her eyes sparkling and cheeks flushed with mirth. Itachi's eyes widened, mortified when realizing what words slipped carelessly out of his mouth.

"I, uh...Are you going to eat that?" he quickly blurted out, pointing at her half-eaten dango stick, still blushing furiously.

Izumi nodded, though puzzled since he had one more dumpling to eat, and handed hers to him. One look at his red face, so uncharacteristically open like before, her laughter burst again until tears appeared in her eyes. Itachi was speechless. He didn't see what was so funny...not that he minded her laugh. She can be so weird...

"I'm sorry..." gasped Izumi finally, wiping a tear from her eye. "It's just that, Itachi-kun...you looked so ready to use your Sharingan. You should have seen your face. It was so funny."

 _Oh._ Really embarrassed now, Itachi looked away from her. Izumi, not noticing, stretched her arms above her and let them down with a happy sigh. "Ahh!" She closed eyes to feel the sun hit her face. "Okay, I won't laugh anymore. Sorry, Itachi-kun!"

When there was silence, Izumi opened her eyes and noticed Itachi shying away, looking really embarrassed.

Feeling pity for him, and guilty for laughing at him, she said, "Look, I'm sorry. I forgot how sensitive you can be. Let me make it up to you. Is there anything you want?"

Itachi looked at her now. "Anything?" he said quietly, and Izumi nodded.

 _I want..._ His eyes met her dark brown, the sun lighting them until flecks of crimson can be seen around her pupils. Red and brown, an uncommon colored trait of his clan.

An image of her older self, wearing a pale blue kimono gown with a pink flower in her long brown hair, surrounded by little dark-haired, dark-eyed children with her lovely soft features, all eating dango, hovered in his mind briefly. It was a surprising, yet pleasant fantasy.

_That's right. She's..._

Izumi blinked, after being caught in his dark, dark gaze, realizing what he was really looking for. She looked away, her happy mood dampening completely. "Yeah, I thought so," she said sadly. "However….that is something I cannot give you." Nor did she want to, even if she was able. Awakening the Sharingan...was not really something to celebrate, like she once believed. Instead, since it was her father's death that awoken hers, it became more of a burden than an accomplishment.

_Half-blooded._

_A Sharingan user._ Itachi too looked away, the two staring at the lake's ripples in solemn silence.

"Itachi-kun, I know you're now busy with your new team, and you have missions," said Izumi finally, "but I really miss this. I miss you."

 _I feel the same, Izumi._ Itachi remained silent.

"Okaasan said you stopped by once months ago, but it seems that while you're free, I'm not. I'm sorry for that, by the way." Her tone became a whisper, and Itachi glanced at her, then. Her expression was sad, almost tired.

"What have you been doing?" he finally asked.

Izumi shrugged, smiling a little. "Classes, play dates, training..." She turned to him. "Ojiisama has been trying to get me to control the Sharingan. I can now activate it without fainting...mostly, because my chakra is still slightly unstable. But I'm improving!"

"That's good," said Itachi, but he could tell by the sadness in her eyes that there was more she was not telling him. "Has Noriro-sama been a good teacher?"

Izumi frowned. "Yeah, but he's very strict. He likes to drive me beyond my limits. It's almost as if he wants me to master my Sharingan more than I do...Sometimes I get too tired of his lessons and have tried stay away from home for a while until it was too late...That never worked."

Itachi frowned. He knew she would never say it, but...he seriously hoped Noriro wasn't abusing her. "Your mother said you were busy," he said slowly. Then he watched Izumi pick up another dango and started eating it, her eyes glaring intensely at the lake. He wondered what she was feeling in that moment. Nervous, stressed...?

"Izumi, what-"

"I'm getting married!" Izumi blurted out loudly, her voice cracking.

"..." Itachi stared. His mind just blanked.

"I-I mean, not now, of course! I'm only eight!" she quickly corrected herself with a groan. Placing her dango down, she wiped her eyes and sniffed. She looked at Itachi, her face scrunched with despair and eyes misty with unshed tears. She had already cried all her tears before, but felt the pain resurface when finally able to tell her best friend and the boy she loved about her problems. "Believe it or not, I just found out a week ago," she said bitterly. "It turns out that I have been engaged since Kaasan and I moved in with the clan, right after Tousan died! Noriro-ojisama said it was the only way the clan can accept me and Okaasan back, so..." She broke off and swallowed, struggling not to cry. "I don't even know who it is yet," she whimpered.

"..."

"Itachi-kun? Won't you say something?"

"...Congratulations," Itachi automatically said, tonelessly.

Izumi looked at him in disbelief. "That's all you can say?!" she cried out.

"I don't know what else to say." His mind was still trying to process the information he absorbed. _Engaged...Izumi...arranged marriage...clan..._ "I didn't mean any offense."

"Yeah, it's okay," muttered Izumi. "It's not like it's a new thing for the Uchiha anyway. Ever since I turned eight, Kaasan and my aunts have been giving me so many lessons on everything about being a housewife. They said all the Uchiha girls start preparing at my age. But I didn't see the real reason behind it until now."

That's right. Itachi remembered that now. He once heard that his mother had started her lessons when she too was eight, because it was strictly custom for every woman in the Uchiha clan to get married and produce offspring, preferably sons, so acting as housewife was considered their honorable positions. More so than being a kunoichi. It has always been that way.

"We do it for the clan," continued Izumi softly, "and I'm no different. Besides, since you're the clan heir, you were more likely to have an arranged marriage than I was. I'm right, aren't I?"

"...I guess...it would definitely be expected," Itachi said slowly. He hadn't really thought about it. Marriage was definitely not a topic he would think, let alone talk, about. It was actually the last thing on his mind. He mostly focused on excelling in his skills of becoming a great shinobi, protecting the village, his home, and to hopefully one day become Hokage so that he would succeed in erasing all fighting in the world. As far as he knew, his father hadn't announced anything about an arranged marriage with some mystery Uchiha girl of high class and skill. Even if he already was, he wondered who it would be...no! All he could think about right now was who Izumi's fiancée could possibly be.

"You could marry me if you want," he said quietly, twirling the dango in his hands uncomfortably.

Izumi gasped and looked at him with wide eyes. "W-What? You would?" Did those words actually just leave her stoic crush's mouth?

"Ah." He nodded, awkwardly.

Blushing deeply, she started to smile from this moment of pure bliss. It had always been her dream and wish to marry Itachi, and he was practically proposing to her now by offering to be her husband, like the kind, sweet friend he was…but a thought suddenly hit her, filling her with unease.

The thought of her uncle's fuming temper and disapproval filled her mind. She was used to being scolded, looked down upon like a bug with those icy black eyes and many others for being a "weak" half-Uchiha, but that didn't mean she didn't want it to stop. It wasn't until recently that she had discovered that she wasn't the only mixed-breed in the clan, which made her feel a little better, but the difference was that both she and her mother were from an important family, just slightly beneath Itachi's family. Like the Hyugga clan, the Uchiha kept the families in separate branches, only they made it less obvious.

The average Uchiha families normally followed tradition, but anyone would notice some people with different hair colors like brunette, light gray, dark blue, or dark green (there never has been a blond Uchiha, though) with slightly lighter-colored eyes like hers. Based on history, most of them were descended as multigenerational because members of their families had married into either royalty, aristocratic families, or prodigies and heirs from other noble clans, but any half-blood in those families had faded over time when their children and their children's children married other Uchiha.

Then there were the upper class families, who all strictly stuck to inbreeding, procreating pure-blooded Uchiha. No exceptions. Fugakgu Uchiha was an heir of what is considered the "head family" (like the Hyuggas would call it), a long line of leaders descended from Izuna Uchiha, the younger brother of Madara Uchiha, one of the village's founders. Mikoto, his wife, was probably one of his distant cousins.

Then there was her own branch, who were not exactly a line of leaders, but guardians of the Nakano Shrine, which in turn guarded the secrets of the Uchiha Clan's history and their Sharingan. But they did not have full rights or access to the scroll like the leaders of the clan did, such as Fugaku. It was for security reasons. Even Noriro did not have the rights to know the secrets, and she could guess that it always infuriated him.

Anyway, her family was just as honorable as the head family when it came to breeding...that is, until the honorable and favored niece of the elder Lord Noriro, Hazuki Uchiha, ran off from her arranged marriage to elope with a regular Jounin citizen of the Leaf, Kosuke Utada, whom she had been secretly meeting with for quite a time. Her mother's disobedience had been an ultimate disgrace to their family, and before an annulment can be forced, Hazuki was already pregnant. Since then, rumors had quickly spread that her father impregnated her mother before they had gotten married, but whether those accusations was false or not didn't change anything. Hazuki had been disowned from the clan and was sent to live outside of the compound, where she and Kosuke lived together in his small house.

Then Izumi was born. Her existence being the evidence of her mother's defiant actions, Izumi was a half-Uchiha, therefore a bastard in her clan's eyes, because the Uchiha refused to acknowledge her mother's marriage to her non-Uchiha father. And ever since her father died and their house was destroyed during the Nine-tails attack, both Izumi and her mother had lost everything...but were coincidentally summoned back by the great-uncle she had never met or heard of, not long after the funeral.

Her father's death, the village leaders' orders, or Izumi's newly awakened Sharingan, seemed to have been their opening in being welcomed back in the Uchiha clan, much to Izumi's anger, but Hazuki was desperate to find them a home for her daughter's sake. So her mother went to her uncle and was forced to beg for forgiveness, for a place to stay in his home, until they found stability. Out of 'mercy,' Noriro took them in, but he always seemed to look down at Izumi with undisguised disapproval and disgust, causing the little girl to shrink in fear. In his eyes, she remained a filthy mistake that tainted his family's heritage...but a mistake that still inherited the Sharingan.

Ironically, this was why the marriage was happening. It turned out to be part of the deal that would allow Izumi being fully welcomed back into her own clan, a sacrifice Hazuki agreed to. Since then, Izumi's relationship with her mother became delicate and her dreams of being Itachi's wife seemed to shatter.

But here he was now, offering to be her future husband, laying out all of her deepest desires at her feet for the taking...but something seemed to be missing. And it bothered her greatly when noticing the awkwardness in Itachi's tone when he offered, like his heart wasn't fully into it. _That_ was what she wanted, she realized with a painful jolt. Not to be his wife...but to have him love her as much she loved him, marriage or not. Like her parents did.

"Itachi-kun...are you offering because you're being kind," Izumi said slowly, "or is it...you know, something more?" She added that latter with a mumble, hoping it was the case.

Itachi tilted his head, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

Izumi stared at him. "Y-you know...do you, I mean, would you….love me?"

Itachi blinked. "Does it matter?" he said, undeterred.

Her heart tore in two right there. Izumi felt the breath knock out of her. It may not have been intentional, but his words hurt far more than he could possibly imagine. It was as she feared. She felt like crying and screaming. _He doesn't love me._

She looked away, trying to hide the heartbreak and keeping her whole entire self composed, like she had been taught. It was so difficult. "E-Even if it were possible….even if we ever got permission from the leaders..." Izumi said quietly, "if you ever choose to marry someone, you should do it for love, not kindness. Do you love me, Itachi-kun?"

Itachi hesitated, not knowing how to answer. Izumi took his hesitation as an answer and took a deep breath. "Then I won't do this to you," she said quietly, carefully. _No matter how much I want to, more than anything...but not if he doesn't love me. I'll probably only make him miserable._ "Thank you for offering, Itachi-kun," she whispered, trying to hide the waver in her voice, "but this time, it will be _my_ duty to the clan, not yours."

"Izumi..." Itachi began to say, but when she didn't look up, he dropped his gaze toward the water, staring at his reflection. He was so confused. His chest was continuously aching. Why wouldn't she just take his offer, to save the trouble? He was used to performing duties, making sacrifices for others' sake, but Itachi knew he would happily have sacrificed himself for Izumi just to spare her from any kind of pain, no matter how impossible and unrealistic it sounded to him. She was that important to him.

So _why_ was she doing this?

"Oi!" Both Uchiha children turned to see an older boy with messy, gray hair, critical black eyes, and a Hidden Leaf headband around his forehead eyeballing them distastefully, one hand perched on his hip. Tenma Izumo. "We have another mission," he announced to Itachi, before turning on his heel to walk back across the pier. "Quit flirting."

"We're not flirting!" Izumi yelled after him defensively, as Itachi reluctantly stood up.

Not only did he want to stay longer with his old friend, but it looked like he wasn't going home after all. Once a mission was called out to him, Itachi was summoned without question or complaint. Sasuke will have to wait for him a little longer.

"Itachi-kun..."

Itachi looked back down at Izumi, who was still seated at the pier's edge. She was now smiling up at him, her face completely soft and bright from the light of the afternoon sun. Her smile was gentle and warm like her large doe eyes, which were so full adoration, innocence, and carefully hidden concern toward him. "I cannot give them to you, but I will pray for you," she said softly. "I hope your Sharingan activates really soon. And when it does, I'll congratulate you."

Itachi felt a strong urge to touch her face right there and then, remembering how soft and warm it was, but restrained himself as usual, keeping his own expression unmoving. She really did look beautiful, both inside and out. And there was so much left unsaid between them, but somehow, the emptiness in his chest felt fulfilled, even for just a short time. He truly was glad that he had run into her.

"Izumi..." he began.

"Oi, Uchiha, hurry it up! We're leaving!" Tenma shouted from the grassy hill bordering the pier.

Itachi let out a breath, and just bowed his head at her politely. "Thank you for sharing your treat with me," he said.

Izumi smiled sadly. "Stay safe, Itachi-kun," she whispered.

Itachi stared. Then, without another word, he turned around with a swish of his ponytail and started walking across the pier where Tenma was already leaving.  
When he left, Izumi looked out at the beautiful lake, her smile slowly fading. She felt his chakra grow farther away behind her. When it was finally gone, her expression finally broke in agony as she started weeping silently. Tears poured out in streams.

She could not believe she was doing this. Not in million years did she ever think to have the strength to...to reject Itachi Uchiha, of all people. The chance of a lifetime...but it had to be done. If he didn't love her, then he would be trapped in her place. At least she would give him a chance to find love. He deserved that. Oh, but it hurt so much!

Yet somehow, she would never let go of her dream, however impossible it seemed.

When she finally stopped crying, Izumi wiped her cheeks with her two palms and took a deep breath. _No more crying,_ she told herself, straightening up. She picked up a dango and started munching on it, hoping the sweetness will overcome her heartbreak. She will be strong. And seeing Itachi again reminded her that she will push harder to be stronger, both in battle and in spirit.

And maybe, just maybe, her future will become something unexpectedly wonderful. But her love for Itachi will be forever in her heart, no matter what.  
...

 _Be safe, Itachi-kun._  
While preparing to leave on his mission with Team Two, Itachi kept replaying his conversation with Izumi and was frustrated that their talk had been cut short by another mission, and by _Tenma_ of all people.

_Izumi..._

Still tasting the sweet dango in his mouth, he thought of her soft, kind face looking up at him, pure and glowing...then a new question popped into his mind, all more new and confusing than his curiosity of birth and death.

_Love..._

He did not know if he loved her. Love had only been for his family. Love had been for Sasuke, without a doubt. Familial love. Even Shisui had the honor, after much consideration, since he was very much like a big brother to Itachi.

Izumi could be like a sister to him….but somehow Itachi didn't see her that way. It always felt like she was more than that. Much more. Which is why he was unsure of the term 'love' she was not satisfied enough with him.

_What is love, exactly?_


End file.
